Pulmonary & Respiratory Medicine

Emphysema

Emphysema, or pulmonary emphysema, is a lower respiratory tract disease, characterized by air-filled spaces (pneumatosis) in the lungs, that can vary in size and may be very large. The spaces are caused by the breakdown of the walls of the alveoli, and they replace the spongy lung parenchyma. This reduces the total alveolar surface available for gas exchange leading to a reduction in oxygen supply for the blood.