Abstract

Respiratory diseases, both acute or chronic and infectious or non-infectious, affect millions of people worldwide. The leading causes of morbidity and mortality due to respiratory diseases like asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, interstitial lung diseases, cystic fibrosis (CF), respiratory infections and lung cancers impose enormous socio-economic burdens. Despite the significant improvement in understanding the mechanisms of these disease processes, only a few effective therapies have been developed, and most of the treatments reduce the symptoms but do not prevent the disease. There is a need for the development of efficacious respiratory drugs as well as the drug delivery system to reduce health care burdens and improve patient outcomes. Pulmonary drug delivery has not been fully explored, considering the increasing complexity of respiratory diseases, which demands an emerging need for suitable, effective and patient-complaint pharmaceuticals. In this chapter, we provide an overview of the burden of respiratory diseases, current treatments and limitations; a brief outline of chronic lung diseases and their pathogenic mechanisms; and the need for the development of novel and effective pulmonary drug delivery systems.