Clinical reviews in allergy & immunology
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Clin Rev Allergy Immunol · Aug 2004
ReviewDifferences in airway remodeling between asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The functional consequence of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)is airflow limitation, which is mostly reversible in asthma and not fully reversible in COPD. In both diseases, inflammatory conditions are associated with cellular and structural changes,referred to as remodeling, and these structural changes may lead to thickening of the airway wall, thereby promoting airway narrowing and airflow limitation. However, the pattern of infiltrated cells and the pattern of structural changes occur differently in the two diseases. ⋯ Squamous epithelial metaplasia and airway wall fibrosis are commonly observed characteristics of COPD. Destruction and fibrosis of the alveolar wall occur in COPD but not in asthma. The remodeling processes accompanied by chronic inflammatory infiltrates interact in a complex fashion and contribute to the development of airflow limitation in both asthma and COPD.