In 2001, it was estimated that 20.3 million Americans suffer from asthma. To be sure, asthma is a widespread problem, in both children and adults alike. What exactly, though, is asthma?
Asthma is a reversible lung disease caused due to a chronic inflammatory reaction of the airways to different stimuli. When encountering triggering stimuli, the airways will swell, muscles will squeeze and mucus may block the ability to breathe. Asthma comes in different shapes and forms, depending on the reaction to triggers in the environment and the severity of the disease. Asthma can be a very life-threatening condition, so it’s important to take the diagnosis seriously.
Asthma Symptoms
Asthma is a disease that affects the bronchial tubes, or airways, in the lungs. It is a chronic illness that will not go away and can get worse if left untreated. Asthma claims approximately 5000 lives each year in the United States and sends another 2 million people to emergency rooms. The dangers of asthma are very real, and it is important to recognize the symptoms in order to assure early detection and treatment.
There are two main facets of the condition, increased inflammation of the airways and constriction of the muscles around the airways, which makes it difficult to breathe. This constriction results in the four most recognized symptoms of asthma, which are wheezing (noisy breathing), shortness of breath, chest tightness and/or pain, and excessive coughing.
If not treated, asthma attacks can progress and become more severe. Persistent coughing, shortness of breath when walking or talking, a bluish tint to the lips, lack of concentration, and increased agitation and confusion are all symptoms of severe attacks and indicate the possibility of impending respiratory failure.
What Causes Asthma?
For those suffering from asthma, knowing what will increase the symptoms experienced by your condition plays an important role in controlling it. While the exact cause is still a mystery, being aware of what triggers your asthma exacerbations or attacks will help prevent those attacks from occurring or becoming life-threatening. The factors scientists believe are the actual cause of asthma have been shown to be genetics, varied infections and exposures to harmful entities in the environment, and how lungs and immunologic systems have developed throughout the course of life.
Genetic inheritance is one of the factors that physicians and scientists widely accept as a cause of asthma. Although the gene responsible for it has, as of yet, not been identified, “atopic” diseases, such as atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, and asthma, are found to have a familial link.
The inception of asthma often occurs during childhood, when the critical time of development and growth of the lungs occurs. Premature babies, youngsters exposed to second-hand smoke, and babies who suffer repeated respiratory illnesses are all more susceptible to developing asthma, either as an infant or a young child.
Studies have also shown that the function of the immune system plays a vital role in a person’s vulnerability to developing asthma. Children and adults with allergies to different environmental exposures are more likely to develop asthma than those whose immune systems do not react as violently to irritants. Exposure to cat dander, pollen, grasses, mold, and cigarette smoke can often trigger an asthma attack, as well as allergic reactions, to those with more reactive immune systems.
In addition to these factors, there is significant scientific proof that nonallergic and nonimmunologic exposures to toxic irritants, such as second-hand smoke, fumes, gasses, and other noxious emissions, can be a causative factor in the development of asthma.
Research is ongoing into the causes and cures for asthma sufferers, but if you believe you may have asthma, it is imperative to see your healthcare physician for diagnosis and proper treatment.
Asthma Treatment
If you have asthma, one of the best ways to get a handle on control is to discover what triggers it. Many people have different triggers – allergies to mold, dust or pollen, gasses, or particles in the air, animals, cigarette smoke, or even the common cold virus. Once you have identified your triggers, you can learn to avoid them. In many cases, there are medications that can help reduce the effects of the trigger, as well as inhalers that can quell your asthma symptoms. In the case of exercise-induced asthma, inhalers used before and during exercise will greatly reduce the asthma effect.
Asthma can be diagnosed in different ways. Your doctor will take a medical history, assessing your symptomatology, and he or she may even run blood tests, chest x-rays, allergy tests, or spirometry, which measures the air you breathe into and out of your lungs. If you think you may have asthma, seeing your healthcare professional for more information and options is of utmost importance.
Basically, treatment of asthma derives from three basic principles:
- Until proven otherwise, asthma is just the manifestation of an allergy.
- Allergies are caused by foods and airborne substances.
- We fight allergies by modifying diet and improving air qualify.
Improving your Environment
With regard to the third principle, frequent cleaning with hot water and simple detergent is essential for asthma sufferers. (Avoid heavily perfumed cleaners, as these may include respiratory irritants.) Also, asthma patients should never smoke, nor should smoking be permitted in their homes. Patients with a sensitivity to pollen should stay indoors during early morning hours when pollen counts are at their highest. Outdoor air pollution has been demonstrated to raise the incidence of asthma attacks. Of particular concern is a high concentration of ozone, which causes inflammation of the respiratory system. Unfortunately, the EPA reports that over half of all Americans live in areas that exceed recommended standards for ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and particulates.
Molds and fungi, especially the strains Aspergillus and Penicillium, are another area of concern. These grow on organic materials such as fruits, wood, compost, and grains, and then enter the body by sticking to dust particles in the air. Asthma attacks can also be triggered by wood dust, especially from western red cedar. In addition to asthma, wood dust is a contributing factor in the disease adenocarcinoma, the incidence of which is a thousand times higher in woodworkers than in the general public.
Many patients buy expensive air filtration systems in order to combat airborne allergens. The good news is that such systems do appear to cause a moderate reduction in asthma symptoms, but not across the board. Rather, current studies indicate air filtration is most useful against animal dander, especially cat hair–and even then the reduction in symptoms is barely significant. Air filtration devices are even less useful against dust mites or cockroach allergens, and this is true of both electrostatic precipitators and high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) systems. Room ionizers are just as ineffective. On the plus side, HEPA-equipped vacuum cleaners can be effective against many allergens if airflow through the cleaner has been tightly sealed.
Medications
Asthma inhalers have changed the way people dealing with asthma can live their lives. Through this type of convenient medication, asthma sufferers everywhere are able to find a quality of life regardless of personal trigger problems. The use of inhalers, however, is just one part of controlling asthma problems. Exercise, trigger stimuli avoidance, and checking lung functions with a metered-dose inhaler (MDI) are also important in the management of chronic asthma.
Metered-dose inhalers and dry powder inhalers are two of the most common forms of medication for asthma. A metered-dose inhaler uses a chemical propellant to force the medication out of the inhaler, usually performed by pushing down on the top of the canister and breathing in deeply. Dry powder inhalers do not push the medication out, but just release the powder, which a patient will inhale forcefully in order to reach the lungs.
Asthma inhalers deliver different types of medication. Short-acting bronchodilators will provide immediate relief of symptoms, but the effects do not last over a long period of time. Proventil (pictured above), Maxair and Ventolin are a few short-acting bronchodilators available. Long-acting bronchodilators will relieve asthma symptoms over a longer period of time, and a couple of brand-name long-acting bronchodilators are Serevent and Foradil. Corticosteroids, the third type of asthma medication, are to be used long-term in the prevention of asthma attacks. In the case of Advair (pictured left), corticosteroids and long-acting bronchodilators work together to help manage chronic asthma symptoms.
Because asthma can be a life-threatening condition, it is important to see your healthcare provider and discuss the use of asthma inhalers. He or she will run tests and prescribe the best medication for your needs.
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