What is asthma?
Asthma is a
respiratory illness with symptoms such as frequent wheezing, difficulty breathing, a sense of chest congestion, and frequent spells of coughing and gasping.
It is a
condition of the respiratory system in which the airways narrow down often after
exposure to a trigger.
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These symptoms of asthma can range from minor
to life-threatening and can be treated by medicines and independent lifestyle
adjustments.
This
disorder is a chronic inflammatory syndrome in which the airways have enhanced
responsiveness to numerous stimuli and are characterized typically by bronchial
hyper-responsiveness, increased mucus production, intermittent airway blockage, and frequent inflammation.
Asthma
triggers
Do you enjoy
the outdoors? Do you love pets? What if you should select between these things
and your capability to breathe?
Unfortunately,
for many asthma sufferers, that option is one they make every day. Asthma is a
dangerous disorder that limits airways and causes breathing difficulties which
results in many deaths annually.
So, how can
asthma patients do the things they enjoy without suffering? Knowing asthma
triggers and how to control them are the first steps to a better, happier life.
Here are a
few asthma triggers and ways to control them:
* smoking. Tobacco smoke, whether inhaled by a smoker or discharged from
the end of a burning tobacco product, irritates air passageways.
To keep smoking from triggering an
asthma attack, asthmatics should respectfully ask friends and guests in their
house to refrain from smoking. Parents with asthmatic children should prevent smoking
in their homes.
* Dust mites. These microscopic organisms reside in every home. They
subsist on skin flakes and commonly live in mattresses, pillows, carpets,
upholstered furniture, bedcovers, garments, stuffed toys, and other
fabric-covered items.
You should clean sheets, bedcovers, and
blankets at least once weekly in hot water; cover mattresses and pillows in
dust-proof covers, and maintain low interior humidity.
* Pets. To keep pets around and avoid asthma problems, pets should be kept
out of bedrooms and any other locations where people sleep. They should also be
kept away from fabric-covered surfaces, which can gather hair.
* Mold. Mold may develop on wood, paper, carpet, and foods. Mold can best
be prevented by adjusting moisture in your home. To do so, patch leaks in pipes
and make sure moisture-filled areas, including kitchens and bathrooms, are well-ventilated.
* Cockroaches. Droppings or body parts of cockroaches might be asthma
triggers. To handle them, free your home of areas for them to hide, and be sure
not to leave out food or rubbish.
Symptoms and pathophysiology of asthma
Like other
diseases, asthma also shows symptoms that characterize its early, progressing, and
later stages. Some of the frequent symptoms include coughing, wheezing,
shortness of breath, and chest tightness.
The first
stage - early warning signs of Asthma
If you are
in the early stages of an asthmatic episode, you might feel several common
symptoms. These prevalent symptoms are characterized throughout the inception
periods of the asthma episode. The symptoms include:-
*Frequent coughing during sleep at the night.
*Experiencing wheezing or coughing after
exercising.
*Shortness of breath.
*Extreme tiredness following activity.
*Feeling exhausted and upset all the time.
*Experiencing a runny nose, sore throat, headaches, and sneezing
regularly.
If you
encounter any of the above symptoms, you should immediately have yourself
evaluated for asthma. The swifter you act, the more you will be able to manage
it.
The second
stage - Advancement, and aggravation of Asthma
If you are
not able to identify the earliest signs of asthma, or if you ignore such
symptoms, asthma could develop worse. The progression of asthma starts
compromising your everyday activities and sleep. Some of the signs of
deteriorating asthma include:
*Regular and unrelenting cough.
*Frequent wheezing.
*Declined reaction to medicines.
*Shortness of breath.
*Experiencing regular tightness in the chest.
Asthma
should be detected immediately upon countering these symptoms or it could
further grow into a severe stage inflicting damage to your body.
The final
stage and its symptoms
When asthma
reaches its terminal stage it starts affecting you badly. It makes life
difficult for you and can even cause death. You would require emergency
medical assistance if you develop any of the symptoms described below:
*Rapid breathing.
*Undying chest discomfort and pressure.
*Non-stop coughing.
*Sweaty and dull face.
*Blue fingernails and lips.
*Hampered speech.
*Retraction of neck and chest muscles.
*Frequent gasping for air.
*Severe wheezing.
Asthma can
only be controlled, not cured. So you must adhere to suitable medication and
medical directions. It is also crucial to keep free of any known triggers,
which can provoke an asthma attack.
You should consult
your doctor promptly if you are concerned you may be suffering from asthma.
Diagnosis of asthma
If you are
suffering from any of these symptoms you should visit the physician for a proper
diagnosis. Asthma is strongly suspected if a patient suffers from eczema or
several other allergic conditions and already has a family history of asthma.
However, the diagnosis of asthma involves the following factors:
In children, it begins with developed breathing problems, a history of nasal stiffness
[rhinitis], itchy eyes [allergic conjunctivitis], and eczema.
For adults, it involves listening to the lungs with a stethoscope and examination of nasal
passages.
Blood tests
and sputum studies are also great ways to diagnose asthma.
Spirometry
is a breathing test, which measures the amount, and the rate at which air can pass
through the airways.
Exercise
challenge tests and methacholine inhalation tests are also great procedures to
evaluate airway responsiveness.
Asthma and pregnancy
Asthmatic
women can face serious problems during pregnancy. If they do not take proper
care, asthma can attack both the mother as well as the fetus inside the mother.
Therefore
uncontrolled asthma in pregnant women often leads to complications like
premature birth, low birth weight, and maternal blood pressure changes.
Following
are brief ways pregnant women can take care of their asthma:
- The expectant mother should remain active and sleep throughout the night.
- Pregnant women with asthma should do some regular exercises under the supervision of their physicians.
- The pregnant mother should avoid medications like iodides, aspirin or ASA products, tetracycline, sulfonamides, and antihistamines.
Why asthma education is critical?
Rather than
treating asthma like a run of separate asthma attacks, doctors are now treating
asthma as a chronic disorder that is affected by practically every element of
the patient’s life.
Instead of
focusing on acute care intervention, doctors now focus on everyday treatment,
medication, and monitoring to help minimize symptoms of asthma and lessen the
severity of asthma attacks when they do happen.
Asthma
education is a vital aspect of that management. By training the patient and his
family on how to monitor his own condition, what causes flare-ups of symptoms, and
how to avoid them, doctors can reduce the number of hospitalizations and
emergency department visits due to asthma.
Using a peak
flow meter, an asthmatic may keep track of his lung capacity and seek
appropriate therapy if it wanders into the danger zone. Education about asthma
can impress upon him the significance of measuring every day and keeping good
records.
Spreading
that education into the community can help save your child's and other
children's life.
Something as
easy as spending an hour with a third-grade class to explain to them how to help
someone suffering an asthma attack can bring back unexpected dividends.
After all,
wouldn’t you rather know that all of your child’s classmates will recognize an
asthma attack and do the correct thing when they encounter one?
The
administration of your child’s school is another place where asthma education
may pay off large returns. Many schools still don’t grasp how crucial it is
that a child with asthma has his inhaler with him at all times.
When schools
restrict an asthmatic child his right to carry his inhaler for fear that other
children would find a way to abuse it, the implications can be tragic.
Making the
effort to do a bit of advocacy and asthma education can literally mean the
difference between life and death.
Community
asthma education can also make a huge impact on whether or not children with
asthma are appropriately diagnosed.
Many people
still don’t identify the signs of asthma unless they see an acute attack -
although moderate asthma and the symptoms of chronic asthma may be devastating
to a child’s life.
Chronic
respiratory diseases, bronchitis, pneumonia, and chest pain can keep youngsters
out of school and in the emergency room.
By educating
the community through public service announcements, school outreach programs,
clinic visits, and physician incentives, many children with concealed asthma can
be reached and treated, decreasing the overall expenditures of health care as
well as improving the individual child’s health.
Like
diabetes education ten years ago, asthma education today may assist alert parents; in identifying people who suffer from asthma and making sure that appropriate
medication is available to everyone who needs it.
This is
especially significant in the case of childhood asthma when the diagnoses and
treatments and standards of care so often seem to be inequitable.
Asthma education can assist ensure that all
parents are informed of the standard of treatment that their children should be receiving which is the first stage to certifying
that the children receive the care that they need.
How to aid a patient having an asthma attack?
Knowing the
basics of asthma treatment is vital when trying to aid someone undergoing an
attack.
Maybe you
are having dinner with a friend and all of a sudden, she looks panic-stricken
and gasps for breath. Or perhaps your children’s pals have come over to your
house and your daughter cries that her best buddy can’t breathe.
Do you know
how to deal with these situations? If you can deliver the correct
asthma therapy, it can perhaps save someone’s life.
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Here are
crucial facts you should know:
*
During a bout of asthma, people find it
easier to breathe while sitting up than lying down. To aid them to rest in a
comfortable position.
*
Most asthma patients know what they need to
do to deal with an episode. So it is advisable to ask them. Ask whether they
have an inhaler and where it is. If they don’t have one, ask them if you should
call for aid.
Many asthma patients carry not just an
inhaler, but a written instruction card as well. An asthma episode might
briefly rob the sufferer of his capacity to talk.
In such cases, an instruction card
describing what needs to be done can be invaluable. If there is such a card,
just do what it says.
*
Help them use the inhaler. An inhaler is
designed to deliver a specified dose of asthma medication. The drug relaxes the
patient’s airways and helps restore regular breathing.
Medication is so crucial that in case the
patient doesn’t have his or her inhaler available, most doctors agree that it
is alright to use someone else’s. Nothing else you can do has nearly the same
effect as taking the correct medication.
In general,
you should give two to four puffs of the inhaler and then wait for around five
minutes for the next dose.
Position the
mouthpiece of the inhaler between the patient’s lips. Let him know when you are
about to deliver a puff so that he can breathe in at the same moment.
Wait for
several seconds before you release another puff. Or until he lets you know he
is ready for the next one.
You can use
a spacer to help the user inhale the medicine through several
breaths, instead of one breath. This device sits between the inhaler and the
person’s lips and can hold the drug in place between breaths.
If a spacer
is not available, you can manufacture one by rolling up some paper to create a
tube.
*
Once you’ve provided medication, examine
the patient for several minutes. Is it getting easier for him to breathe?
*
If it looks like they are not reacting to
the medication within ten minutes, call an ambulance. And continue to provide
around four puffs of medicine every five minutes while waiting for the
ambulance.
The drug
will assist prevent the asthma attack from getting worse even if it doesn’t
seem to provide immediate relief.
*
Stay cool throughout the episode. This will
assist the patient remain calm as well. If he panics, it will intensify the
asthma attack and make it even more difficult for him to breathe.
So talk to
him calmly, to reinforce the idea that everything is under control. This is
critically crucial.
Being aware
of these asthma treatment principles will help you deal effectively with
various emergency circumstances.
Treatments for asthma
Asthma can
be treated with two types of drugs that include quick-relief medicines and
long-term control treatments. While rapid relief medicines should be given with
the first signs of asthma, long-term treatments are taken every day usually
over long periods to prevent symptoms and asthma attacks.
Following
are the many therapies for asthma:
- Children with moderate or severe asthma should know to use a peak flow meter to assist keep asthma under control.
- Medicines are the greatest therapy together with inhalers. However, medicines like beta-blockers used for treating high blood pressure and glaucoma, nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs, and aspirin should be avoided.
- Regular physical activity is beneficial to decrease asthma.
You should
control your asthma to remain fit and healthy in life.