Preventing COPD Exacerbations and Flare-Ups

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a spectrum of inflammatory lung diseases that restrict airflow in your lungs, making it harder to breathe. In most cases, a COPD diagnosis means having chronic bronchitis, emphysema, or, quite often, both. 

COPD isn’t curable, and the lung damage it causes isn’t reversible. But it’s not all bad news. Continuous care management can slow disease progression, prevent further lung damage, and help you breathe easier, feel better, and stay active. 

At Fivestar Pulmonary Associates, our COPD care approach strives to help you prevent exacerbations, or symptom flares that can land you in the hospital. Here, our team explains the importance of tight COPD control and discusses six prevention strategies that work.

Understanding COPD flare-ups

When COPD is well-controlled, your usual activities are easy, your appetite is good, you sleep well at night, and your cough and sputum (mucus or phlegm) are normal for you. But when your COPD symptoms flare and worsen rapidly, the resulting exacerbation can:

• Make it hard to catch your breath
• Cause noisy, wheezing respiration
• Trigger worsening coughing bouts
• Lead to more phlegm production 
• Change sputum color or thickness
• Leave you feeling extremely tired
• Make it harder to eat and sleep

COPD exacerbations typically last 7-10 days, but even after treatment — whether at home or in the hospital — it may take 4-6 weeks, and sometimes up to 8 weeks, to feel normal again. 

Knowing what to do when you notice the warning signs and acting quickly can limit the severity of a COPD symptom flare, prevent further lung damage, and help you avoid the spiral into a life-threatening emergency. 

Preventing COPD exacerbations

When it comes to staying healthy with COPD, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Put another way: Preventing a flare-up is always better than having to treat one. 

COPD exacerbation prevention is a multi-faceted, continuous care endeavor that involves:

1. Smoking cessation 

If you smoke or vape, quit. Smoking, the leading cause of COPD, is a factor in three in four cases. Continuing to smoke worsens COPD lung damage, accelerating disease progression and triggering recurrent exacerbations. Ask our team for help with smoking cessation. 

2. Medical management

COPD control requires ongoing medical management:

Take your medications

To reduce airway inflammation and improve lung function, take your prescribed breathing medicines, such as long-acting bronchodilators and inhaled corticosteroids, as directed by your doctor.

Have a COPD action plan

Develop a detailed COPD Action Plan with your doctor. This written plan describes a good “green zone” COPD day, a bad “yellow zone” COPD symptom flare, and a severe “red zone” COPD emergency. 

It also tells you exactly what steps to take to maintain the green zone, shift from the yellow zone back to the green zone, or respond to a red zone emergency. 

3. Healthy lifestyle habits

Light daily exercise is important for people with COPD. Physical activity strengthens the muscles that help you breathe and improves your overall wellness. Our team can guide you on how to become more physically active.

Healthy eating is also important for supporting lung health and immune function. If fatigue and shortness of breath make it harder to eat, aim for smaller, more frequent meals centered on fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats. 

4. Infection risk reduction

Respiratory illness can make COPD worse, triggering symptom flares that are harder to quell and more likely to rapidly snowball into a severe exacerbation that requires hospitalization. Reduce your risk of infection by:

• Getting your annual flu shot every September
• Vaccinating against pneumococcal disease
• Practicing good handwashing hygiene habits 
• Wearing a protective mask in crowded places 

It’s also important to stay away from family and friends who are sick with a cold, flu, COVID, or other respiratory infection. 

5. Environmental control

Managing your environment is all about COPD trigger avoidance. Stay away from smoke, air pollution, strong odors, chemical fumes, and high pollen counts, all of which can trigger an exacerbation. 

Likewise, keep your home well-ventilated, especially when cleaning with chemical products. When outdoor air is smoky or full of airborne allergens, close your windows and run air purifiers until the air quality improves. 

6. Pulmonary rehabilitation

In addition to seeing your pulmonologist for regular check-ups as recommended, join a pulmonary rehabilitation program. You’ll receive education, personalized exercise training, and ongoing support to help manage your condition and improve your health. 

Does your COPD flare too often?

If COPD exacerbations seem to happen all too often, Fivestar Pulmonary Associates can help. Fill out our online COPD Assessment Test today, then schedule a visit with our experts at our nearest office in Allen, McKinney, and Plano, Texas.