[The role of inflammation in the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease].

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the most common diseases, the forth leading cause of mortality in the world. The chronic inflammation is a characteristic finding in COPD from the early stages of the disease, observed in the airways, parenchyma and pulmonary blood vessels. It has direct influence on the development of typical airflow limitation as well as progressive lung structure damage. Review presents recent data on the role of inflammation in the pathomechanism of COPD, emphasizing its input on different stages of disease progression.