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| Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are cared for and treated at the Department of Internal Medicine, Thong Nhat General Hospital. Photo: H. Dung |
Many people only know the harmful effects of smoking when they become seriously ill, and from there they are determined to quit smoking to maintain their health and prolong their lives.
Continuously hospitalized for shortness of breath
Mr. NVT (64 years old, residing in Xuan Truong commune, Xuan Loc district) has been smoking since he was 15 years old. Mr. T. said that at that time, he smoked to follow his friends, then when he grew up, he did business and interacted with many people, so he considered smoking as a channel of communication. Although each cigarette he inhaled did not give him a feeling of pleasure, according to him, it was a habit that was difficult to give up. For decades, Mr. T. regularly smoked 2 packs of cigarettes every day.
For the past 2 years, Mr. T. has been frequently hospitalized and treated at hospitals in the province for myocardial infarction.
Mr. NVT advised: “It is never too late to quit smoking. If we are truly determined to quit smoking for our own health and the health of those around us, we can easily quit, even if we have smoked for a long time. Quit smoking today.”
“I often felt tired, had difficulty breathing, and was out of breath. I had to stop to catch my breath before I could speak. After the doctor placed three stents, I gradually recovered and could walk easily. My wife and children saw that I was so sick that they bought an oxygen generator to put at home so that whenever I had a shortness of breath, there would be support immediately. As for the nebulizer, I always had to carry it with me to prevent sudden shortness of breath attacks,” said Mr. T.
Mr. PVĐ. (61 years old, residing in Tan Bien ward, Bien Hoa city) has also smoked for nearly 40 years. Mr. Đ. is struggling with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and is often hospitalized for emergency care.
Mr. D. said that two years ago, while carrying a bag of goods from the ground to a tricycle, he felt suffocated and could not stand, so he was taken to the emergency room. After examination, the doctor said he had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, an incurable disease that requires lifelong treatment.
Mr. D. said: “In the past 2 years, I have had to go to the emergency room nearly 20 times, sometimes staying in the hospital for a week, sometimes taking 2-3 weeks to recover before being able to go home. When I go out on the street, if I smell the smoke from vehicles, smoke from grills or the weather is too hot, I also have difficulty breathing. If I had known that smoking is so harmful, I would not have smoked in the first place or quit smoking a long time ago.”
“Exposing the false attraction”
On average, each day, the Internal Medicine Department of Thong Nhat General Hospital receives, cares for and treats 60-70 patients, of which patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease account for more than 50%.
Ms. Hoang Thi Thanh Tuyen, Head of Nursing Management of the Internal Medicine Department, said that patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease must use inhalers on time to prevent and relieve shortness of breath, usually every 4-6 hours as prescribed by the doctor. In addition, they must breathe oxygen at 1-2 liters/minute or intermittently and rest in bed, avoiding strenuous activities during the acute phase to prevent severe shortness of breath.
“Because patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease often have difficulty breathing between 2 and 4 a.m., we need to closely monitor and instruct patients and their relatives that if a patient has difficulty breathing, they must immediately notify the doctor or nurse for support. At that time, the patient must be given oxygen and nebulizers to dilate the bronchi and stop the difficulty breathing. All actions of medical staff must be very fast, accurate, and timely, because if delayed, the patient may develop severe symptoms, acute respiratory failure, and be life-threatening,” Ms. Tuyen shared.
Specialist Doctor I Phan Tuong Van, Department of Internal Medicine, Thong Nhat General Hospital, said that smoking is one of the causes of dangerous diseases, seriously affecting human health such as: cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, and even cancer. Smokers are many times more likely to get lung cancer than non-smokers. In particular, people who regularly inhale cigarette smoke are also at high risk of lung diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer.
Not only that, smoking also causes a serious burden on medical costs. The economic damage caused by tobacco, according to the World Health Organization, is estimated at 108 trillion VND/year.
The theme of this year’s World No Tobacco Day was chosen by the World Health Organization as “Exposing the false allure” to expose the tactics of tobacco corporations around the world in false advertising, misleading the public that tobacco is harmless to expand the consumer market, especially among young people. The World Health Organization called on countries to join hands in implementing a communication campaign in response to World No Tobacco Day for a healthier future.
Hanh Dung
Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/xa-hoi/202505/ngay-the-gioi-khong-khoi-thuoc-la-31-5-bo-thuoc-la-chua-bao-gio-la-muon-0f13c7f/
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