What Is Asthma
Asthma is a disease, caused by
hypersensitivity the airways to various
stimuli. It is a chronic condition with
acute exacerbations. In this country, there
are approximately 28 million asthmatics;
nearly one third of them (8.6 million) are
children under 18 years of age. Asthma
can be life-threatening if not
properly managed.
Asthma is characterized by excessive
sensitivity of the lungs to various stimuli.
Asthma breathing problems usually happen in
"episodes" or "attacks". An asthma episode
is a series of events that result in
narrowed airways. These include: swelling of
the lining , tighten of muscles, and
increased secretion of mucus in the airway.
The narrowed airway is responsible for the
difficulty in breathing with the familiar
"wheeze".
Triggers range from viral infection to
allergies, to irritating gases and particles
in the air. The most common form of asthma
is "allergic asthma" so if you have
allergies you more than likely have allergic
asthma.
Each person reacts differently to the
factors that may trigger asthma, including
some respiratory infections; colds; allergic
reactions to pollen, mold, animal dander,
feathers, dust food1 and cockroaches;
vigorous exercise; exposure to cold air or
sudden temperature change; cigarette smoke;
excitement, and stress. It is very
important you know what your triggers are.
Asthma therapy includes efforts to reduce
the underlying inflammation and to relieve
or prevent symptomatic airway narrowing.
Such efforts should lead to reduction in
airway hyper responsiveness and help prevent
irreversible airway obstruction
The two classes of medications used to treat
asthma are bronchodilators and
anti-inflammatory agents.
Mti-inflammatory agents interrupt the
development of bronchial inflammation and
have a prophylactic or preventive action.
They may also modulate or terminate ongoing
inflammatory reaction in the airways. These
agents include corticosteroids, commonly
sodium or commonly-like compounds, and other
anti-inflammatory compounds.
Bronchodilators act principally to dilate
the airways by relaxing bronchial smooth
muscle. They include bet adrenergic
agonists, methylxanthines, and
anticholinergics
Asthma is the leading serious chronic
illness among children. Most children have
mild to moderate problems and their illness
can be controlled by treatment at home or in
the doctor's office. For some children the
illness becomes a formidable problem causing
numerous visits to the hospital emergency
room and multiple hospitalizations
Wishing you the best of health
The Allergy Store+
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