Respiratory Disorders: Contemporary Issues in 2020

ABSTRACT

Respiratory system bears the major brunt of environmental insults. Respiratory infections such as pneumonias continue to threaten human health. The corona virus pandemic (COVID-19) is the most recent example of a respiratory infection threatening the human kind. Tuberculosis is one of the most ancient diseases which continue to pose as a clinical problem. Besides infections, there is a huge burden of chronic respiratory disorders in terms of morbidity and mortality. Chronic respiratory disease (CRD) is among the most common non-communicable diseases (NCDs) identified by the World Health Organization. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the third most common cause of death the world over. Respiratory allergies such as bronchial asthma, environmental, occupational and other interstitial lung diseases are other common chronic lung diseases which are increasing in incidence. Several new diagnostic and treatment modalities have been added in our armamentarium to fight against these disorders. Besides the medical and surgical treatments, some of these interventions are non-pharmacological in nature such as the pulmonary rehabilitation and patient education programmes. Newer strategies and governmental programmes constitute other important steps to control the disease-burden. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022.