Causes of breathing difficulty

Breathing difficulty is the inability to breathe in enough air or feeling a kind of obstruction or discomfort when breathing. The important thing to remember is that the intensity of this sensation does not illustrate how serious it might be. Some people may be left out of breath after just going up the stairs and have no disorder whatsoever, while others may almost never feel any symptoms and at the same time have serious issues in their lungs.

What can cause the difficulties while breathing?

The most obvious way to disrupt the normal breathing process is by obstructing the air passages like the nose, mouth or throat. Difficulty while breathing can also be of the cardiac nature because there are some heart conditions which include this particular symptom as a consequence. This happens due to insufficient blood circulation and the lack of oxygen in the blood. This issue can also be of emotional nature and be the result of accumulated stress, anxiety and follow a panic attack. Finally, shortness of breath is the consequence of a number of lung diseases.

How dangerous is the difficulty while breathing?

Whether difficulty while breathing is dangerous or not depends on the cause that brought it on. And while it is very likely that the cause will be quite harmless and go away on its own in a little while, the possibility of it being a serious issue makes it quite urgent to investigate the cause as soon as one discovers the symptoms.

When is it necessary to contact a doctor as soon as possible?

Should the difficulty to breathe properly come abruptly and violently or should one find himself unable to catch a single breath, that is a sure sign that immediate medical assistance is necessary. These are the most alarming manifestations of shortness of breath that one might experience. However, they are not the only ones to pay attention to.

One should most certainly contact a doctor if they should experience such uneasiness in the chest that simply cannot be ignored. Also, if the breathing difficulties arise while one’s under no physical strain or even when sleeping, something is bound to be wrong. A violent rough cough, no matter if it’s the result of a cold or whatever issue, is also recommended to have checked out. Finally, the obvious problem that is swallowing something or choking on an object requires a doctor’s help straight away.