Chronic conditions are treatable.

If there is any consolation for persons who suffer from chronic lung problems, it is that their conditions can be treated in ways that don't interfere with their having a normal lifestyle, indicates David Levin, professor of medicine, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Chronic coughs usually can be attributed to a complication of smoking, viral infection, or occasionally a reaction to some type of medication.

Asthmatics typically treat their ailment with inhalers that emit a mist of steroids or bronchodilators. Many also are using "peak flow meters," allowing them to monitor their ability to empty their lungs and adjust medication accordingly.

Other common lung problems include acute and chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and allergies. "Anyone can get bronchitis from a viral infection. Chronic bronchitis, on the other hand, is one of the few diseases that has been thoroughly defined. If you cough and produce mucous daily for three months [in] two consecutive years, you have chronic bronchitis." Emphysema is a pathologic condition resulting...