Medical uses. Plants of the genus Ephedra, including E. sinica and others, have traditionally been used by indigenous people for a variety of medicinal purposes, including treatment of asthma, hay fever, and the common cold. The alkaloids ephedrine and pseudoephedrine are active constituents of E. sinica and other members of the genus.
People with moderate to severe, stage 2 and 3 emphysema, have a life expectancy of five years or more with intensive treatments. People with end-stage, stage 4 emphysema, have little time to live, even with treatment [source: No More Smokes].herefore, the prognosis of emphysema is not favorable. The average life expectancy for someone with emphysema is five years. Your life expectancy drops to two years, however, if you donât seek treatment and/or you do not quit smoking [source: Health Information Directory].
View All. Symptoms of emphysema are insidious in nature and may not, at first, be easy to recognize. Emphysema is among a group of lung diseases known as COPD, in which the alveoli of the lungs become damaged, causing them to enlarge and burst. Because the alveoli are where oxygen and carbon dioxide are exchanged, damage to this area makes it difficult for people with emphysema to expel all their air. This causes a build-up of carbon dioxide in the body.