This delayed onset of symptoms catches the smoker by surprise at a time when the process is irreversible.
Pure forms exist, but patients often have some combination of both diseases.
Both are included in the term chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Here, some of the features of each disease will be described, beginning with a case history of a patient with symptoms of both emphysema and chronic bronchitis. There was a history of cough with phlegm that was troublesome especially during the winter months. Every year he usually had several colds that seemed to last a long time. He often noted wheezing.