What should I do if there is a shadow in my lungs that has not changed for three years?

At present, the main way to check chest diseases in clinical practice is X-ray. Some patients often find shadows in their lungs after the examination, which makes patients very scared, fearing that they have lung cancer. At the same time, it will also make patients highly nervous, which is very detrimental to their life and work. Some patients have shadows in their lungs that have not changed for three years. So what should we do if there are shadows in the lungs that have not changed for three years?

First, what should I do if there are shadows in the lungs that have not changed for three years? Infectious lung diseases include: Pneumonia: It is a lung infection caused by pathogenic microorganisms (bacteria, mycoplasma, chlamydia, viruses, etc.). In addition to lung shadows on X-ray examinations, patients also have symptoms such as coughing, sputum, fever, chest tightness, fatigue, and difficulty breathing. In severe cases, infectious toxic shock may even occur. The most common pathogenic microorganisms are bacteria. The shadows often appear in flakes on chest X-rays. In severe cases, the entire lung lobe may be affected. A routine blood test can reveal a significantly increased white blood cell count. After anti-inflammatory treatment with antibiotics, a review of the chest X-ray can reveal that the lung shadows have been significantly reduced or even completely disappeared. Generally, the patient will recover after 2 weeks of treatment.

Second, pulmonary tuberculosis: It is a lung infection caused by a special bacterium, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and its incidence has been increasing in recent years. Common locations are the apex, posterior segment of the upper lung and dorsal segment of the lower lobe on both sides. The shadows appear as scattered flakes, which may contain calcification foci, sometimes spherical lesions or miliary lesions. In rare cases, the entire lobe of one lung may be affected, forming a so-called "destroyed lung." Patients often have symptoms of tuberculosis poisoning such as coughing, sputum, hemoptysis, low-grade fever in the afternoon, fatigue, night sweats, and loss of appetite. If acid-fast bacilli are found in the sputum and the skin tuberculin test is strongly positive, the diagnosis can usually be confirmed. Most patients with pulmonary tuberculosis respond well to treatment with anti-tuberculosis drugs (remifen, levofloxacin, ethambutol, etc.), but if the spherical tuberculosis lesions are combined with cavities, or if there is "damaged lung", they should undergo thoracic surgery for resection.

What should I do if there is a shadow in the lungs that has not changed for three years? Pay attention to whether there is inhalation injury, tracheotomy or intubation, aspiration, pulmonary edema, atelectasis, shock, surgical anesthesia, invasive infection of the wound, suppurative thrombophlebitis, etc. Pay attention to any breathing difficulties, temperature changes, cough, increased sputum volume and sputum characteristics. Clinical symptoms should be differentiated from burn toxemia or sepsis.