Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a condition that makes it hard to breathe, because the airways that carry air in and out of your lungs become narrow and partially blocked.
COPD is a common lung disease that affects many people. In fact, over 12 million people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with COPD, and approximately 12 million more have the disease but don’t even know it.
Cigarette smoking is the most common cause of COPD. However, a number of other factors, such as excessively breathing in pollution, dust, or chemicals and smoke in the air, can also cause COPD. For advice on quitting smoking, check out the Helpful Resources section.
What are chronic bronchitis and emphysema?
People with COPD have chronic bronchitis and/or emphysema. With chronic bronchitis, the lining of the airways in your lungs
becomes inflamed and produces extra-thick mucus, as in the image below. This mucus can clog the airways, causing persistent
coughing and difficulty breathing.
With emphysema, the lining of the tiny air sacs at the end of the airways in your lungs becomes damaged and less flexible, as in the image below. Since these air sacs fill up with air when you breathe in and deflate when you breathe out, the ability of air to move in and out of your lungs becomes limited when the sacs are damaged. Some air may get trapped in your airways, and as a result, you may feel as though you can't catch your breath.
TUDORZA™ PRESSAIR™ is a prescription medicine used long term, 2 times each day to treat symptoms of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
TUDORZA is not a rescue medicine and should not be used for treating sudden breathing problems. Your doctor may give you other medicine to use for sudden breathing problems.
TUDORZA is not a rescue medication and does not relieve sudden breathing problems. Always have a rescue inhaler medicine with you to treat sudden symptoms.
Before you use TUDORZA, tell your doctor about all your medical conditions, including if you have eye problems (especially glaucoma), prostate or bladder problems, or problems passing urine. TUDORZA may make these problems worse. You should also let your doctor know if you have a severe allergy to milk proteins.
Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and non-prescription medicines and eyedrops. Especially tell your doctor if you take anticholinergics (including tiotropium, ipratropium) and atropine.
Do not use TUDORZA more often than prescribed or take more medicine than prescribed for you.
Seek immediate medical help if your breathing problems worsen with TUDORZA, you need to use your rescue inhaler more often than usual, or your rescue inhaler does not work as well for you.
TUDORZA can cause serious side effects. Stop taking TUDORZA and seek medical help right away if you experience:
The most common side effects of TUDORZA include headache, common cold symptoms, and cough. These are not all the possible side effects with TUDORZA.
Please also see the full Prescribing Information, including Patient Information.
