Respiratory & Lungs

Asthma is a long-term condition where the airways become narrow, inflamed, and twitchy — causing cough, wheeze, chest tightness, and breathlessness. In India, asthma is extremely common, often poorly controlled, and frequently misdiagnosed as "recurrent bronchitis".

Snoring is noisy breathing in sleep from vibration of the soft palate and throat. Occasional light snoring is usually harmless.

Cough is the body's reflex to clear the airways. Most coughs are from a short-lived viral infection, but in India several important treatable causes — asthma, GERD, TB, smoking-related COPD, and air-pollution-related lung disease — present mainly with persistent cough.

Pulmonary fibrosis is scarring of the lungs. The scarred tissue can't move oxygen into the blood properly, leading to breathlessness and dry cough.

Breathing problems range from mild breathlessness on exertion to life-threatening respiratory failure. Some are cardiac (heart failure), some are pulmonary (asthma, COPD, pneumonia, pulmonary embolism), some are metabolic (anaemia, acidosis), and some are anxiety-driven.

Lung diseases are among the biggest health problems in India — asthma, COPD, tuberculosis, pneumonia, occupational lung disease, and (rising fast) interstitial lung disease and lung cancer. Tobacco and air pollution drive most of the avoidable burden.

Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a sudden blockage of a lung artery, usually by a blood clot that travelled from a deep vein in the leg (deep vein thrombosis, DVT). It can be fatal within hours and is under-diagnosed in India — the symptoms are often blamed on other causes.

Asbestos is a group of fibrous minerals once used widely in roofing sheets, insulation, brake linings, gaskets, and construction. India has not banned asbestos and it continues to be used in some industries and in old buildings.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disease that makes the body's mucus thick and sticky. It blocks the lungs (leading to repeated infections and progressive lung damage) and the pancreas (causing poor digestion and weight-gain problems).

Emphysema is one of the two main forms of COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), the other being chronic bronchitis. In emphysema, the tiny air sacs of the lungs break down and merge, losing the surface area needed for oxygen exchange.

Oxygen therapy is breathing supplemental oxygen when the lungs can't keep blood oxygen at safe levels. It saves lives in severe pneumonia, COPD, heart failure, and post-COVID lung disease.

Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is a structured programme of exercise, breathing training, and education for people with chronic lung diseases. It is one of the most effective — and under-used — treatments in Indian respiratory medicine.