A possible pathological link among swallowing dysfunction, gastro-esophageal reflex, and sleep apnea in acute exacerbation in COPD patients

Abstract

Shinji Teramoto Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Hitachinaka Medical Education and Research Center, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki, JapanWith interest, we read the review article by Lee and Goldstein1 published in the recent issue of the International Journal of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. The authors have comprehensively summarized the possible roles of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in a variety of aspects of pathogenesis of COPD. However, the considerable associations among GERD, swallowing dysfunction, sleep apnea, and acute exacerbation (AE) of COPD have not been fully discussed. View original paper by Lee and Goldstein.

Keywords

• COPD
• acute exacerbation
• GERD
• aspiration
• sleep apnea