Respiratory medicine is a major medical specialty and information on  various conditions such as asthma, COPD, chronic cough can be found at various popular websites. This page  does not intend to reproduce  such easily available information.

Unexplained breathlessness

The symptom of breathlessness may be caused by diseases of the lung, heart, obesity, poor fitness, anaemia or “dysfunctional breathing” (DB).

The term “dysfunctional breathing” is not clearly defined but it refers to disordered respiratory function, which includes subjective awareness of the process of breathing. It may cause or be associated with a variety of complaints. The term “functional breathing complaints” could be used for respiratory complaints with insufficient organic explanation.

A diagnosis of dysfunctional breathing is suspected on the basis of the clinical history.  This requires an in depth understanding of the ‘language’ one uses to describe the breathing difficulty. The next step is clinical examination and appropriate diagnostic tests to exclude abnormalities of the heart and lungs.  The diagnosis can be confirmed using a Cardio-Pulmonary Exercise Test.

Dysfunctional breathing may occur on its own, or co-exist with heart and lung disease.   Apportioning the contribution by the different conditions is difficult and is often  an art informed by science.