Common causes of feeling short of breath are: lung problems, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) heart problems, such as a cardiovascular disease and heart failure. infections in the airways, such as croup, bronchitis, pneumonia, COVID-19, the flu and even a cold.
While there are many causes of shortness of breath, the most common causes are lung disease, heart disease, or deconditioning (lack of exercise, especially in people who are overweight or obese).
If shortness of breath happens when you're clearly not exerting yourself, when you're doing something you normally could do without feeling winded, or comes on suddenly, those are warning signs that a heart issue could potentially be to blame.
Importantly, if shortness of breath is moderate to severe and occurs suddenly — and especially if it's accompanied by chest pain, lightheadedness and changes to the color of your skin — it's become a medical emergency that warrants a call to 911.
Most cases of shortness of breath are due to heart or lung conditions. Your heart and lungs are involved in transporting oxygen to your tissues and removing carbon dioxide, and problems with either of these processes affect your breathing.
Common cardio-respiratory conditions such as cancer,10 chronic non-malignant lung disease, and heart failure increase in prevalence with age and are common causes of breathlessness (60% – 88% with heart failure and 90% – 95% with late stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).
Other conditions, including anxiety, asthma, a blood clot in the lungs, cancer, or a chest infection like pneumonia, can also lead to shortness of breath. We also know that breathlessness can affect some people after they have had Covid-19.
Commonly these include blood tests, imaging tests such as a chest X-ray or CT scan, lung function tests or an echocardiogram.
"Chest pain, rapid heartbeat and breathlessness may result when an insufficient amount of blood reaches the heart muscle," says Tung. (See "Symptoms" below.) One of the key distinctions between the two is that a heart attack often develops during physical exertion, whereas a panic attack can occur at rest.
Warning signs and symptoms of heart failure include shortness of breath, chronic coughing or wheezing, swelling, fatigue, loss of appetite, and others. Heart failure means the heart has failed to pump the way it should in order to circulate oxygen-rich blood throughout the body.
Stage 2 of Congestive Heart Failure
Stage two of congestive heart failure will produce symptoms such as fatigue, shortness of breath, or heart palpitations after you participate in physical activity.
CAD happens when coronary arteries struggle to supply the heart with enough blood, oxygen and nutrients. Cholesterol deposits, or plaques, are almost always to blame. These buildups narrow your arteries, decreasing blood flow to your heart. This can cause chest pain, shortness of breath or even a heart attack.
People can experience shortness of breath while walking for a number of reasons. Sometimes, this occurs as a result of conditions such as anxiety, asthma, or obesity. Less commonly, shortness of breath signals a more serious underlying medical condition.
If you've struggled with your breathing for a while, don't ignore it. See your GP as it's likely you have a long-term condition, such as obesity, asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which needs to be managed properly.
Medications that can precipitate respiratory impairment include ACE inhibitors, NSAIDs, anticonvulsants, beta blockers, calcium channel blockers, cholinergics, antihypertensives, antibiotics, antifungals, antimicrobials, antiretrovirals, digoxin, interferon, and chemotherapy agents.
If you have breathlessness, you experience shortness of breath and difficulty breathing. The medical term is dyspnoea. It may come on suddenly (acute) or gradually over a period of time (chronic). The reason for breathlessness is that the body needs more oxygen than it is getting.
Often, the first thing a doctor, nurse, or emergency medical technician will do is give you extra oxygen (called oxygen therapy). You get it through tubes in your nose or windpipe, or through a mask placed over your nose and mouth. This helps get more oxygen into your lungs and bloodstream.
When your body experiences anxiety, it goes into fight-or-flight mode to protect itself from an immediate threat. It releases adrenaline, a hormone that pumps blood to your muscles and causes your body temperature to rise. It also sends most of your oxygen to your muscles, which is why you may feel short of breath.
Shortness of breath can be a symptom of multiple potentially life-threatening conditions, including pneumonia, heart attack, pulmonary embolism (blood clot in the lungs), sepsis (severe reaction to infection), pneumothorax (collapsed lung), and others.
Dizziness or weakness. Heart palpitations, or sensations of your heart racing or fluttering. Nausea or sweating. Shortness of breath.
“Getting diagnosed with heart failure usually starts when you notice symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue, rapid or irregular heartbeat or swelling in the legs, ankles, feet or abdomen,” says Dr. Piña.