Severe COPD can cause heart failure in heart’s lower right chamber, or ventricle.
- This is a condition called right-sided heart failure or cor pulmonale.
- Right-sided heart failure causes fluid to build up in body,
such as in legs and belly area.
- Shortness of breath and fatigue are the most prominent effects of CHF and COPD.
- For both conditions, shortness of breath typically occurs with physical exertion in the early disease stages, and it can occur at rest with advanced disease.
Depression and Anxiety
At least 1 in 10 people with early COPD get depression or anxiety, and that number climbs as the disease gets worse.
Medication can help, along with exercise and even music therapy.