Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common and preventable condition. Chronic means persistent. Obstructive describes the prevention of the usual flow of air into the lungs. Pulmonary means 'to do with the lungs'. It is a long-term illness or disease.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original article at https://patient.info/chest-lungs/chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease-leaflet