Hyperinflated Lungs

What are hyperinflated lungs?

Hyperinflated lungs happen when the airways in your lungs are narrow, and air and mucus can’t get out. The trapped air and mucus in your lungs make it harder to breathe and your lungs become overinflated. Over time, this can also lead to lung tissue damage, heart damage and prevent you from having enough oxygen circulating in your body. 

A healthcare provider can diagnose hyperinflated lungs with X-rays and other imaging scans and by physical examination. Treatment for hyperinflated lungs can involve medication to widen your airways (inhalers and/or nebulizers), breathing exercises and even surgery.

What causes your lungs to hyperinflate?

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the most common cause of hyperinflated lungs. COPD is an umbrella term for a range of lung diseases including chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

Chronic bronchitis is a condition that causes irritation in your bronchial or airway tubes. This results in your airways swelling and narrowing, which makes it harder to breathe. It also causes you to have excess mucus or phlegm.

Emphysema is when the tissue in your lungs break down permanently due to damage. There are tiny air sacs in your lung that play a crucial role in transferring oxygen into your blood and carbon dioxide out. In emphysema, these tiny air sacs are damaged, and the air gets trapped so you can’t breathe it out. 

Other lung conditions that affect how well you exhale (or breathe out) can also cause your lungs to hyperinflate. These include:

• Asthma.
• Cystic fibrosis.
• Bronchiectasis.
• Bronchiolitis.

How common are hyperinflated lungs?

Hyperinflated lungs are most common in people with COPD. There are about 15 million to 20 million people in the United States living with COPD. The exact number of people with hyperinflated lungs is unknown.

What are the symptoms of hyperinflated lungs?

The symptoms of hyperinflated lungs resemble other symptoms people with lung conditions may experience. These include symptoms like:

• Shortness of breath.
• Shallow breathing.
• Feeling tired or like you have no energy.
• Chest congestion.

You can feel these symptoms without exerting much energy at all, which means everyday activities can leave you extremely short of breath and tired.

What are the risk factors for hyperinflated lungs?

Certain respiratory conditions and lung diseases increase your risk of developing hyperinflated lungs because they’re known to cause it. These include COPD, asthma and emphysema. Smoking is also a major risk factor.

There are some genetic risk factors, like alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, which also cause emphysema and hyperinflated lungs.

What are the complications of hyperinflated lungs?

One of the more serious complications of hyperinflated lungs is that it can put pressure on your heart. Over time, this pressure can lead to changes in your heart’s ability to pump your blood into your lungs. This increases your risk for heart failure and decreases oxygen in your blood

Hyperinflated lungs can disrupt your daily life and make it hard to breathe. You may find doing your normal tasks is difficult, and your quality of life is affected by breathing difficulties.

How are hyperinflated lungs diagnosed?

A healthcare provider can diagnose hyperinflated lungs by reviewing your medical history and symptoms. They’ll listen to your lungs and heart with their stethoscope and ask you to take several deep breaths. A physical examination may show that your chest doesn’t inflate and deflate as it should.

Your provider may order imaging tests to get a better look at your lungs and how they’re working. These tests may include:

• Chest X-ray: This gives your provider images of your lungs, heart and other body systems.
• Computerized tomography (CT) scan: A CT scan gives your provider a much more detailed picture of your lungs and heart.
• Pulmonary function tests: These tests look at your lung capacity and how well your lungs work overall.

Your healthcare provider may refer you to a pulmonologist (a provider who specializes in the respiratory system). 

Are hyperinflated lungs serious?

Yes, hyperinflated lungs can be serious. Aside from causing lung damage and impacting your quality of life, they can put stress on your heart, which could lead to heart failure.

What is the treatment for hyperinflated lungs?

Treatment for hyperinflated lungs depends on the severity of your symptoms and your health history. Some possible treatment options include:

• Bronchodilators: This is a type of medication that relaxes and expands the muscles around your airways. It helps the trapped air get out of your lungs. These usually come in the form of inhalers or vials for a nebulizer.
• Breathing techniques: Your provider may recommend performing special breathing exercises like pursed lip breathing to help expand your airways. Pulmonary rehabilitation is a special program of exercise training that’s very helpful for people with COPD and other lung diseases.
• Oxygen therapy: Supplemental oxygen through a nasal cannula or face mask can help you get the oxygen your body needs.
• Devices to help with breathing: A nebulizer and CPAP machine can improve airflow from your lungs.
• Lung volume reduction surgery: This is typically a last resort when all other treatment options fail.

Do hyperinflated lungs go back to normal?

Unfortunately, the damage is usually permanent. But treatment can reduce symptoms and the need to go to the hospital or the ER. Treatment can make it easier for you to breathe, but your airways and lung tissue won’t repair themselves completely.

How do I prevent hyperinflated lungs?

The best way to prevent hyperinflated lungs is to take steps to prevent COPD. Smoking tobacco causes up to 90% of COPD cases. Quitting smoking and avoiding secondhand smoke are good ways to prevent COPD and hyperinflated lungs. 

What’s the outlook for hyperinflated lungs?

People with hyperinflated lungs can live a normal life with the right treatment. While you can’t repair your lungs completely, your healthcare provider can recommend treatment to prevent your lungs from overinflating and causing more damage.

Without treatment, hyperinflated lungs can cause heart damage, which can lead to heart failure.

When should I see my healthcare provider?

Contact a healthcare provider if you experience breathing difficulties, especially if you have a lung condition like COPD or asthma. Some symptoms you should look for include:

• Shortness of breath.
• Difficulty inhaling (breathing in air).
• Feeling tired and having low energy without exerting much effort.

When should I go to the ER?

Go to your nearest emergency room department if you experience breathing difficulties that don’t resolve despite your best efforts. Most people with hyperinflated lungs find that the right treatment helps them breathe easier. But, if you find yourself unable to breathe, seek emergency medical attention.

A note from Cleveland Clinic

Living with a lung condition that makes it hard to breathe can impact your daily life and make normal tasks difficult. Hyperinflated lungs are one of several conditions that can happen in people with lung conditions like COPD and asthma. Your healthcare provider or pulmonologist can help find a treatment that helps reduce symptoms like shortness of breath.

Be sure to take all medications as your provider prescribes. While some lung conditions are beyond your control, you can take steps to prevent them by quitting smoking, avoiding secondhand smoke and minimizing exposure to air pollutants.