organ

Pulmonology

Pulmonology is an area of medicine that focuses on the health of the respiratory system. Pulmonologists treat everything from asthma to tuberculosis.

A pulmonologist is a doctor who diagnoses and treats diseases of the respiratory system -- the lungs and other organs that help you breathe.

What is the respiratory system?
The respiratory system includes the organs that help you breathe. The three major parts of this system are the airway, the lungs, and the respiratory muscles.

Internal medicine is the type of medical care that deals with adult health, and pulmonology is one of its many fields. Pulmonologists focus on the respiratory system and diseases that affect it. The respiratory system includes your:

  • Mouth and nose
  • Sinuses
  • Throat (pharynx)
  • Voice box (larynx)
  • Windpipe (trachea)
  • Bronchial tubes
  • Lungs and things inside them like bronchioles and alveoli
  • Diaphragm
  • Asthma, a disease that inflames and narrows your airways and makes it hard to breathe
  • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a group of lung diseases that includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis
  • Cystic fibrosis, a disease caused by changes in your genes that makes sticky mucus build up in your lungs
  • Emphysema, which damages the air sacs in your lungs
  • Interstitial lung disease, a group of conditions that scar and stiffen your lungs
  • Lung cancer, a type of cancer that starts in the lungs
  • Obstructive sleep apnea, which causes repeated pauses in your breathing while you sleep
  • Pulmonary hypertension, or high blood pressure in the arteries of your lungs
  • Tuberculosis, a bacterial infection of the lungs
  • Bronchiectasis, which damages your airways so they widen and become flabby or scarred
  • Bronchitis, which is when your airways are inflamed, with a cough and extra mucus. It can lead to an infection.
  • Pneumonia, an infection that makes the air sacs (alveoli) in your lungs inflamed and filled with pus
  • COVID-19 pneumonia, which can cause severe breathing problems and respiratory failure

Why See a Pulmonologist
You might see a pulmonologist if you have symptoms such as:

A cough that is severe or that lasts more than 3 weeks
Chest pain
Wheezing
Dizziness
Trouble breathing
Severe tiredness
Asthma that’s hard to control
Bronchitis or a cold that keeps coming back

  • Pulmonologists use tests to figure out what kind of lung problem you have. They might ask you to get:
  • Blood tests. They check levels of oxygen and other things in your blood.
  • Bronchoscopy. It uses a thin, flexible tube with a camera on the end to see inside your lungs and airways.
  • X-rays. They use low doses of radiation to make images of your lungs and other things in your chest.
  • CT scan. It’s a powerful X-ray that makes detailed pictures of the inside of your chest.
  • Spirometry. This tests how well your lungs work by measuring how hard you can breathe air in and out.
     
    What Kinds of Procedures Do Pulmonologists Do?
    Pulmonologists can do special procedures such as:
  • Pulmonary hygiene. This clears fluid and mucus from your lungs.
  • Airway ablation. This opens blocked air passages or eases difficult breathing.
  • Biopsy. This takes tissue samples to diagnose disease.
  • Bronchoscopy. This looks inside your lungs and airways to diagnose disease.