20/12/2018
Asthma is a common long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is a chronic disease that causes your airways to become inflamed, making it hard to breathe.
Who Gets Asthma?
Typically, it develops during childhood, but it can affect you at any age.
People who have allergies or a parent or close family member with asthma are more likely to have the condition. More boys have asthma than girls, but it's more common in women than in men.
Occupational Asthma
Some types of jobs can raise your chance of having asthma as an adult, such as working in a factory or another place where you're regularly around and breathing in chemicals or dust.
Smoking
Several studies suggest that teens and adults who smoke are more likely to get asthma. And there's strong evidence that second hand smoke plays a role as well. Kids who are around people who smoke have a higher chance of getting asthma early in life.
Causes
Certain triggers can make inflammation in your airways worse. The swelling makes the space inside smaller. At the same time, your body may make extra mucus that clogs those airways. It's really hard for air to get in and out of your lungs, so you wheeze and struggle to breathe.
What Triggers Asthma?
Asthma symptoms can appear when you are exposed to a trigger.
A trigger is something you are sensitive to that makes your airways become inflamed. This causes swelling, mucous production and narrowing in your airways. Common asthma triggers are:
Pollen
Chemicals
smoke
dust mites
stress
an illness
exercise
Medications, such as aspirin and acetaminophen
strong odors
Signs and symptoms
Coughing, especially at night, during exercise or when laughing
Difficulty breathing
Wheezing
shortness of breath
chest tightness
Symptoms are usually worse at night and in the early morning or in response to exercise or cold air. Some people with asthma rarely experience symptoms, usually in response to triggers, whereas others may have marked and persistent symptoms.
Diagnosis
Taking a detailed medical history
A physical exam
Lung function tests
Chest or sinus X-ray
Diagnosis
A lung test called spirometry measures how much air you can breathe in and out. The results will help your doctor decide whether you have asthma and how severe it is. He may also suggest allergy testing to pinpoint some of your triggers.
The doctor will look at the results from these tests. They will then decide what type of asthma you have. They will develop a treatment plan based on the type and severity of your symptoms.
Treatment
There are many effective medicines to treat asthma. Most people with asthma need two kinds: quick-relief medicines and long-term control medicines. Immunotherapy (allergy shots) can also be helpful.
Quick-relief medicines are taken at the first sign of symptoms for immediate relief
Short-acting inhaled beta2-agonists and Anticholinergics
Both types of drugs are bronchodilators, meaning that they expand the passageways into the lungs (the bronchi), allowing more air in and out and improving breathing. They also help to clear mucus from the lungs by enabling the mucus to move more freely and get coughed out more easily.
If you have exercise-induced asthma, your allergist may recommend that you use these medicines before exercise or other strenuous physical activity.
Quick-relief medicines can stop asthma symptoms, but they do not control the airway inflammation that causes the symptoms. If you find that you need your quick-relief medicine to treat asthma symptoms more than twice a week, or two or more nights a month, then your asthma is not well controlled.
Long-term control medicines are taken every day to prevent symptoms and attacks:
Antileukotrienes or leukotriene modifiers
Cromolyn sodium
Inhaled corticosteroids
Long-acting inhaled beta2-agonists (always administered with another asthma-related drug)
Methylxanthines
Oral corticosteroids
Immunomodulators
These medicines are taken every day, even if you do not have symptoms. The most effective long-term control medicines reduce airway inflammation and help improve asthma control.
Immunotherapy
Two types of immunotherapy are available: allergy shots and sublingual (under the tongue) tablets.
Allergy shots: If your asthma is triggered by an allergy, you should consider allergy shots, which are very effective in relieving allergy symptoms and in some cases can actually cure your allergy. The treatment builds up immunity to your offending allergens (pollens, dust mite, pets, mold). It works by injecting small amounts of the allergen in gradually increasing amounts over time. As the shots help the body build up a tolerance to the effects of the allergen, they eventually reduce and can even eliminate your allergy symptoms.
Sublingual tablets: Starting several months before allergy season begins, patients dissolve a tablet under the tongue daily. Treatment can continue for as long as three years. These medications should not be used in patients with severe or uncontrolled asthma.
When your asthma symptoms become worse than usual, it's called an asthma attack. Severe asthma attacks may require emergency care, and they can be fatal.
Prevention
The best way to prevent an asthma episode, or attack, is to follow your treatment plan. Learn your triggers and avoid them. Take your allergy and asthma medicines when you should. Use your quick-acting medicine as soon as you start to notice symptoms. Many people live normal lives with asthma if it’s properly managed.
There is no cure for asthma. The best way to manage asthma is to avoid triggers, take medications to prevent symptoms and prepare to treat asthma episodes if they occur.
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