Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the lung diseases. This disease describes a series of conditions including emphysema which affects the air sacs at the end of the airways, and chronic bronchitis which is occurred when the airways were inflamed and narrowed. Also, the person who suffers from chronic bronchitis usually produces sputum. Moreover, COPD causes difficulties in breathing because the airways have been narrowed. In addition, this disease will reflect on the patient’s quality of life. Also, it has an economic impact on the healthcare system.
According to the British Lung Foundation (2018), COPD caused 5.3% of the total number of deaths in the UK in 2012 and COPD was the second-highest lung disease that caused death. Therefore, the improvement of diagnostic techniques and treatment methodologies for COPD is an important issue that faces the healthcare system.
This article will review the definition and symptoms of COPD, the data and signals required for the diagnostic procedure, and the sensors and devices that are currently used in the diagnostic procedure. Also, the incorporation of sensors/devices into a connected health solution for the management and early detection of COPD will be considered. Finally, this article will illustrate some commercial systems on the market that are used to diagnose COPD and the future trends of diagnosis COPD.