Asthma is a chronic disease marked by difficulty with breathing. Asthma causes a narrowing of the airways, resulting in wheezing, coughing, tightness in the chest and shortness of breath.
Bronchiectasis is a lung disease which causes frequent cough and phlegm, along with repeated infections that may lead to permanent damage of the lungs.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a lung disease caused by damage to the lungs over a long period of time, usually due to smoking. Symptoms include coughing and shortness of breath, and because it takes many years to see symptoms, COPD occurs most often in people over 60 and gets worse over time.
When autoimmune diseases cause inflammation in the lungs, this can lead to scarring. Scarring from this type of inflammation is called interstitial lung disease (ILD).
