About BEWhen it comes to bronchiectasis, knowledge is power.

What is bronchiectasis?

is a disease where your airways become permanently widened, making it harder for you to clear and bacteria. Symptoms of BE can include coughing, mucus production, lung infections, and . It’s a and progressive disease, which means it can affect you long-term and may get worse over time, causing . BE is commonly diagnosed by a , who will review your medical history, including your current symptoms, and confirm BE with a .

See healthy airways compared to airways with BE

Bronchiectasis (BE) airways are widened and filled with mucus compared to healthy airways

How does bronchiectasis affect the lungs?

Curious about what’s actually happening in the lungs? Watch to learn more.

An interconnected cycle contributes to the development of BE

The main factors include , difficulty clearing mucus from the lungs, lung infection, and lung damage.

When choosing a treatment for BE, it is important to work with your doctor to address all factors as each factor can lead to the worsening of the others. See how in the diagram below.

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Bronchiectasis (BE) interconnected factors—lung inflammation

Bronchiectasis (BE) interconnected factors—difficulty clearing mucus

Bronchiectasis (BE) interconnected factors—lung damage

Bronchiectasis (BE) interconnected factors—lung infection

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Lung Inflammation

As your body’s immune system keeps trying to clear the infection from your lungs, this process can result in chronic irritation and swelling, or inflammation.

Who is at risk for bronchiectasis?

BE develops for many reasons, and they can differ from person to person. Certain medical conditions put people at risk, such as:

or asthma
Repeated respiratory infections, like pneumonia, TB, or
Inflammatory diseases, like RA or IBD
A weakened immune system, like immunodeficiency disorders
Aspiration syndromes, like GERD
Inherited (genetic) disorders, like PCD or alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency

or asthma
Aspiration syndromes, like GERD
Repeated respiratory infections, like pneumonia, TB, or
Inflammatory diseases, like RA or IBD
A weakened immune system, like immunodeficiency disorders
Inherited (genetic) disorders, like PCD or alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency

Did you know? More than 1 in 4 people with COPD
may also have bronchiectasis.^footnotea

^footnoteaStudies have shown a range of 26% to 69% of people.

GERD=gastroesophageal reflux disease; IBD=inflammatory bowel disease; NTM=nontuberculous mycobacteria; PCD=primary ciliary dyskinesia; RA=rheumatoid arthritis; TB=tuberculosis.

What are the symptoms of bronchiectasis?

Bronchiectasis symptoms can look like those from other lung conditions. Some common symptoms of BE are:

Coughing
Mucus production, which may contain blood or be hard to cough up
Difficulty breathing, shortness of breath, or wheezing
Fatigue
Fever, chills, and/or body aches
Frequent lung infections
Chest pain

When surveyed about their symptoms, people with BE shared concerns about having a constant cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, and feeling misunderstood, embarrassed, and anxious about the potential for future BE flares.

Many BE symptoms overlap with other conditions, which is why there may be a delay in diagnosis.

Wondering how BE is diagnosed?

Learn more about
CT scans