 Full programme transcript >>
Respiratory Medicine
Around a quarter of deaths in the UK are due to diseases of the lung, such as lung cancer, emphysema, bronchitis, asthma and cystic fibrosis.
In Case Notes this week Dr Mark Porter will be reporting on the latest treatments for some of these common lung conditions.
An asthma epidemic?
The prevalence of asthma has rocketed in the last 30 years.
In 2003 more than a quarter of children in the UK had been told they were asthmatic.
Mark Porter asks experts whether they think this is the true incidence or if some cases are misdiagnosed, and discusses the best and safest treaments for asthma.
Bronchial Boogie
In Oldham there's a pilot project called the Bronchial Boogie, in which primary school aged children are taught to manage their asthma through learning to play a woodwind instrument.
Thanks to the project, the children are using their inhalers less often, taking fewer days off school, and more of them are able to take part in sport.
COPD
A less well known lung condition is chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder - COPD
The term covers smoking related diseases such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
There is no therapy that can reverse the damage, but Mark finds out how drugs and interventions such as ventilation can improve the quality of life of patients.
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30 min
