The Shrinking Heart in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

In this article, the author discusses a study on the occurrence of a shrinking heart in patient with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), published in a 2010 issue of the "New England Journal of Medicine." The author describes the cardiac silhouette on the radiograph performed on patients with emphysema. The linear relation between emphysema and stroke is tackled. Also noted are the consequences of the research findings.