Definition of Emphysema
Emphysema: 1) A lung condition featuring an abnormal
accumulation of air in the lung's many tiny air sacs, a tissue called
alveoli. As air continues to collect in these sacs, they become
enlarged, and may break, or be damaged and form scar tissue.
Emphysema is strongly associated with smoking cigarettes, a practice
that causes lung irritation. It can also be associated with or
worsened by repeated infection of the lungs, such as is seen in
chronic bronchitis. The best response to the early warning signs of
emphysema is prevention: stop smoking and get immediate treatment for
incipient lung infections. Curing established emphysema is not yet
possible. Because patients don't have an adequate amount of space in
the lungs to breathe, they gasp for breath, and may not be able to
obtain enough oxygen. Those with severe emphysema usually end up
using an oxygen machine to breathe. In some cases, medication may be
helpful to ease symptoms or to treat infection in already-damaged
lungs.
2) The escape of air into other body tissues, as may occur during
surgery. This is called surgical emphysema.
Last Editorial Review: 3/26/1998 2:24:00 PMCommon Misspellings: enphysema, ephzemya, emphisemia, emphzema, empseyma, emphazima, emphazema, emphasema
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