Experts has emphasised that smoking cessation is the most important measures to prevent Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases (COPD), while early diagnosis and correct treatment is essential to prevent early death. These were stated at the Continues Medical Education Programme on 'evolving strategies in management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease' organised by the Department of Pulmonology, Liaquat National Hospital, on Thursday, said a press release on Thursday.
Pulmonology Department's Head Dr Mosavir Ansarie, LNH Medical Director Dr Salman Faridi, LNH Consultants including Dr Muhammad Hussain, Dr Mir Saleem Khan, Dr Jawaid A Warind and Dr Syed Ali Arsalan spoke on the occasion.
Dr Mosavir Ansarie spoke on acute exacerbation of the COPD and described the measures required to treat such patient and avoid their hospitalisation, adding the COPD was present 14 percent in rural women and six to nine percent in both the rural and urban men over 65 years of age. He also talked about the importance of current antibiotic and other management strategies.
Dr Mohammad Hussain talking about the COPD management said the important issues were to suspect a person suffering from COPD, then to confirm the diagnosis and to document the severity of the disease.
The long-term oxygen support, vaccination against pneumococcal and influenza, reduced hospital admission, and decrease mortality should be given to all patients, he added.
Dr Mir Saleem Khan, speaking on the COPD in relation to smoking and strategies involved in smoking cessation, said smoking was the major environmental factor that predisposed patient to the COPD.
He said the COPD was the 12th leading cause of death in the world, and if smoking prevalence continued, it would become the fifth most common cause of death by the year 2020 in the world.
He said the COPD was largely preventable, the earlier you stopped smoking, the less damage was caused to lung. Health care workers must advise on ways to stop smoking with brief advice or intensive behavioural therapy and drug treatment with nicotine replacement therapy or antidepressant by the name of Bupropion, he added.
Dr Jawaid A. Warind spoke on Respiratory Failure and said for the last ten years a new strategy of ventilating patients known as Non Invasive Positive Pressure Ventilation (NIPPV) was adopted. The NIPPV was being practised to avoid putting the patient on mechanical ventilator, which was causing a lot of loss and agony to the patients, he added.
Dr S. Ali Arsalan spoke on Pulmonary Rehabilitation, which was a programme to improve physical, psychological and social endurance of the patients suffering from the COPD. The programme generally involved the patients suffering from the COPD, interstitial lung fibrosis, disabling asthma and extensive Bronchiectesis, he said.
The LNH Department of Chest diseases had recently started specialised clinics on pulmonary Rehabilitation under consultancy of Dr S A Arsalan.
Earlier, Dr Salman Faridi in his welcome address said the LNH had always tried to promote medical education and awareness in the doctors and medical students of the city.
He said Lung diseases specially smoking related were on the rise in Pakistan, adding setting up of a smoking cessation clinic in the LNH was an important step in helping people to stop smoking and that clinic had already started functioning at LNH Chest OPD.-PR
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