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European Federation of Allergy and Airway Diseases Patients Association
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  1. What is COPD?
  2. Managing COPD
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COPD

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

coupleThere are more than 600 million people worldwide with COPD and approximately 44 million in Europe.

COPD is one of the few major diseases that is still increasing in terms of the number of people diagnosed.

Chronic means it is persistent – the disease won’t go away
Obstructive means the airways are partly blocked
Pulmonary means in the lungs
Disease means sickness

Although COPD is a serious disease, there are many things you can do that will have a positive impact on your life and improve how you feel. This COPD section investigates some of these things, to give help, support and a voice to people with COPD and their carers.

Additional information

MANIFESTO

EFA COPD Patient Manifesto: Vision for Change

English French German Italian Spanish versions.

COPD

If you have one or more of these symptoms, you may have COPD;

  • breathlessness
  • increased effort to breathe
  • heaviness or a ‘need for air’
  • excessive mucus
  • chronic cough

Visit your doctor for a diagnosis!

COPD MATERIALS

Try the Indoor Environment Test !

NOTE

The production of COPD section was made possible by an educational grant from GSK.
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