The most common symptoms of bronchiectasis include:
- Persistent cough that usually brings up phlegm (sputum)
- Shortness of breath
Common causes in around half of all cases of bronchiectasis, no obvious cause can be found.
These are some of the more common triggers that have been identified.
-
Childhood infections: Around 1 in 3 cases of bronchiectasis in adults are associated with a severe lung infection in childhood, such as:
- Severe pneumonia
- Whooping cough
- Tuberculosis (TB)
- Measles
- Cystic fibrosis: Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disorder, where the lungs become clogged up with mucus. The mucus then provides an ideal environment for a bacterial infection to take place, leading to the symptoms of bronchiectasis
- Cilia abnormalities: Cilia are the tiny hair-like structures that line the airways in the lungs. They're designed to protect the airways and help move away any excess mucus.
Bronchiectasis can develop if there's a problem with the cilia that means they're unable to effectively clear mucus from the airways.
Conditions that can cause problems with the cilia include:
- Young's syndrome – a rare condition only affecting males thought to be caused by exposure to mercury in childhood
- Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia – a rare condition caused by inheriting faulty genes
Connective Tissue Diseases
Certain conditions that cause inflammation in other areas of the body are sometimes associated with bronchiectasis.
These include:
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Sjögren's syndrome
- Crohn's disease
- Ulcerative colitis
These conditions are usually thought to be caused by a problem with the immune system, where it mistakenly attacks healthy tissue.
