TY - JOUR T1 - The effect of obesity on chronic respiratory diseases: pathophysiology and therapeutic strategies JF - Canadian Medical Association Journal JO - CMAJ SP - 1293 LP - 1299 DO - 10.1503/cmaj.051299 VL - 174 IS - 9 AU - Magali Poulain AU - Mariève Doucet AU - Geneviève C. Major AU - Vicky Drapeau AU - Frédéric Sériès AU - Louis-Philippe Boulet AU - Angelo Tremblay AU - François Maltais Y1 - 2006/04/25 UR - http://www.cmaj.ca/content/174/9/1293.abstract N2 - Sedentary lifestyles and increased pollution brought about by industrialization pose major challenges to the prevention of both obesity and chronic respiratory diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, obstructive sleep apnea and obesity hypoventilation syndrome. Obesity has emerged as an important risk factor for these respiratory diseases, and in many instances weight loss is associated with important symptomatic improvement. Moreover, obesity may influence the development and presentation of these diseases. In this article, we review the current understanding of the influence of obesity on chronic respiratory diseases and the clinical management of obesity concurrent with asthma, COPD, obstructive sleep apnea or obesity hypoventilation syndrome. ER -