Breathing difficulty
Also known as: Abnormalities of breathing
General information only. Anpheros does not diagnose and does not recommend treatment. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist about your situation. In an emergency, call 112 (or your local emergency number).
In short
Abnormalities of breathing, such as shortness of breath, make it hard or uncomfortable to take in the oxygen the body needs, which can feel like not getting enough air. While mild breathing problems can occur due to a stuffy nose or intense exercise, shortness of breath can also be a sign of a serious disease, including lung conditions, airway system problems, heart disease, anxiety, panic attacks, or allergies. Shortness of breath is also a major symptom of a heart attack, which requires calling 112 in Europe or 9-1-1 in the United States immediately.
Source: MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine. · Source: CDC. Available free at https://www.cdc.gov/heart-disease/about/heart-attack.html. Use does not imply endorsement by CDC or HHS.
AI-generated summary of the sources cited on this page, checked automatically against them. Not reviewed by a clinician; not medical advice.
Codes
- ICD-10
- R06
- ICD-11
- MD11 Abnormalities of breathing
Description
When you're short of breath, it's hard or uncomfortable for you to take in the oxygen your body needs. You may feel as if you're not getting enough air. Sometimes you can have mild breathing problems because of a stuffy nose or intense exercise. But shortness of breath can also be a sign of a serious disease.
Many conditions can make you feel short of breath:
- Lung conditions such as asthma, emphysema, or pneumonia
- Problems with your trachea or bronchi, which are part of your airway system
- Heart disease can make you feel breathless if your heart cannot pump enough blood to supply oxygen to your body
- Anxiety and panic attacks
- Allergies
If you often have trouble breathing, it is important to find out the cause.
When to get help
In an emergency, call 112 (or your local emergency number).
The major symptoms of a heart attack are:
- Shortness of breath.
If you notice the symptoms of a heart attack in yourself or someone else, call 9-1-1 immediately.
Quoted word for word from the cited source and checked against it; not reviewed by a clinician. Not a diagnosis. 9-1-1 is the US emergency number: in Europe call 112.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — Heart Attack Symptoms, Risk, and Recovery
Next to it in ICD-10
- R04.2Coughing up blood
- R04.8Bleeding from other parts of the airways
- R05Cough
- R06.0Shortness of breath
- R06.1Stridor (noisy, high-pitched breathing)
- R06.2Wheezing
Neighbouring codes in the classification, not a medical link.
What people report
Not enough data yet. Anonymous counts appear here only for groups of at least 20 people who agreed to share them.
External resources
Questions
What is the ICD-10 code for Breathing difficulty?
R06 (WHO, International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision).
What is the ICD-11 code for Breathing difficulty?
MD11: Abnormalities of breathing (WHO, ICD-11 for Mortality and Morbidity Statistics).
Sources and attribution
- Source: MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine.
- ICD-10 codes and titles © World Health Organization. Source: WHO, International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (2019).
- ICD-11 for Mortality and Morbidity Statistics, © World Health Organization, licensed under CC BY-ND 3.0 IGO.
- Names other than the official source titles: Anpheros translations and plain-language names, made with AI assistance and checked automatically; the source names are in English.
- Source: CDC. Available free at https://www.cdc.gov/heart-disease/about/heart-attack.html. Use does not imply endorsement by CDC or HHS.
Anpheros Search catalog 2026.10.5, published 17 October 2026. About the data →
About this page. This page brings together public information from official sources, each cited where it is used. It is not medical advice, it is not a diagnosis, and it does not tell you which treatment to take.
Treatments. Indications are quoted unchanged from official product information (European Medicines Agency, U.S. Food and Drug Administration). They describe what a medicine is approved for, not whether it is right for you. Approved uses can differ between countries. Always read the package leaflet and follow your doctor's or pharmacist's advice.
What people report. Figures marked "reported by Anpheros users" are anonymous counts from at least 20 people who agreed to share them. They show what people report, not what works, and they are not clinical evidence.
Links between terms. "May be associated with" means the link appears in a cited source. It does not mean you have that condition.
In an emergency, call 112 (or your local emergency number). Do not delay seeking medical help because of something you read here.