Question

What is COPD? What are the characteristics of the disease? Knowing that a COPD diagnosis could be reduced through smoking cessations, should insurance companies pay for COPD treatment if the cause can be clearly linked back to smoking?

no plagiarism please

Answer 1

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive respiratory disorder. It is one of the leading disease affecting millions of people world wide. COPD encompasses symptoms of emphysema, Chronic bronchitis and asthma.

Causes of COPD includes:

1. Smoking

2. Air pollution

3. Toxic dusts and fumes

4. Immunocompromised patients

5. Connective tissue disorder like Marfan syndrome

Symptoms of COPD :

1. Cough

2 wheezes

3. Shortness of breath

4. Tachypnea and respiratory distress

5. Peripheral Edema

6. Increased JVP

7. Cyanosis

8. Decreased breath sounds

9. Hyperinflated lungs

Cigarette smoking is the major cause of COPD globally. Smoke from tge cigarette stimulates release of neutrophil from the macrophages, release of chemotactic factors and elastases. These factors cause destruction of lung tissue.

In my opinion, insurance companies should pay for COPD caused by smoking. Not paying the treatment costs of the disease will not help people to quit smoking. It will only increase disease burden on the patient and his family. Instead insurance companies should keep a provision to bear the rehabilitative expenses for cigarette smoking identified groups so tthat they can quit smoking. Also public and community programmes and awareness campaigns should be strengthened to encourage quitting of cigarette smoking.