13/03/2023
1. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ก๐ฆ๐?
Asthma, also called bronchial asthma, is a disease that affects your lungs. Itโs a chronic (ongoing) condition, meaning it doesnโt go away and needs ongoing medical management.
2.๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐ง ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ก๐ฆ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐๐ค?
When you breathe normally, muscles around your airways are relaxed, letting air move easily and quietly. During an asthma attack, three things can happen:
- Bronchospasm:
The muscles around the airways constrict (tighten). When they tighten, it makes your airways narrow. Air cannot flow freely through constricted airways.
- Inflammation:
The lining of your airways becomes swollen. Swollen airways donโt let as much air in or out of your lungs.
- Mucus production:
During the attack, your body creates more mucus. This thick mucus clogs airways.
When your airways get tighter, you make a sound called wheezing when you breathe, a noise your airways make when you breathe out. You might also hear an asthma attack called an exacerbation or a flare-up. Itโs the term for when your asthma isnโt controlled.
3. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฉ๐๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ก๐ฆ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ๐?
Asthma is broken down into types based on the cause and the severity of symptoms. Healthcare providers identify asthma as:
- Intermittent:
This type of asthma comes and goes so you can feel normal in between asthma flares.
- Persistent:
Persistent asthma means you have symptoms much of the time. Symptoms can be mild, moderate or severe. Healthcare providers base asthma severity on how often you have symptoms. They also consider how well you can do things during an attack.
Asthma has multiple causes:
- Allergic:
Some peopleโs allergies can cause an asthma attack. Allergens include things like molds, pollens and pet dander.
- Non-allergic:
Outside factors can cause asthma to flare up. Exercise, stress, illness and weather may cause a flare.
Asthma can also be:
- Adult-onset:
This type of asthma starts after the age of 18.
- Pediatric:
Also called childhood asthma, this type of asthma often begins before the age of 5, and can occur in infants and toddlers. Children may outgrow asthma. You should make sure that you discuss it with your provider before you decide whether your child needs to have an inhaler available in case they have an asthma attack. Your childโs healthcare provider can help you understand the risks.
In addition, there are these types of asthma:
- Exercise-induced asthma:
This type is triggered by exercise and is also called exercise-induced bronchospasm.
- Occupational asthma:
This type of asthma happens primarily to people who work around irritating substances.
- Asthma-COPD overlap syndrome (ACOS):
This type happens when you have both asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Both diseases make it difficult to breathe.
4. ๐๐ก๐จ ๐๐๐ง ๐ ๐๐ญ ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ก๐ฆ๐?
Anyone can develop asthma at any age. People with allergies or people exposed to to***co smoke are more likely to develop asthma. This includes secondhand smoke (exposure to someone else who is smoking) and thirdhand smoke (exposure to clothing or surfaces in places where some has smoked).
Statistics show that people assigned female at birth tend to have asthma more than people assigned male at birth. Asthma affects Black people more frequently than other races.
5. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ฌ ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ก๐ฆ๐?
Researchers donโt know why some people have asthma while others donโt. But certain factors present a higher risk:
- Allergies: Having allergies can raise your risk of developing asthma.
- Environmental factors: People can develop asthma after exposure to things that irritate the airways. These substances include allergens, toxins, fumes and second- or third-hand smoke. These can be especially harmful to infants and young children whose immune systems havenโt finished developing.
- Genetics: If your family has a history of asthma or allergic diseases, you have a higher risk of developing the disease.
- Respiratory infections: Certain respiratory infections, such as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), can damage young childrenโs developing lungs.
7. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐จ๐ง ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ก๐ฆ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐๐ค ๐ญ๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ฌ?
ou can have an asthma attack if you come in contact with substances that irritate you. Healthcare providers call these substances โtriggers.โ Knowing what triggers your asthma makes it easier to avoid asthma attacks.
For some people, a trigger can bring on an attack right away. For other people, or at other times, an attack may start hours or days later.
Triggers can be different for each person. But some common triggers include:
- Air pollution: Many things outside can cause an asthma attack. Air pollution includes factory emissions, car exhaust, wildfire smoke and more.
- Dust mites: You canโt see these bugs, but they are in our homes. If you have a dust mite allergy, this can cause an asthma attack.
- Exercise: For some people, exercising can cause an attack.
- Mold: Damp places can spawn mold, which can cause problems if you have asthma. You donโt even have to be allergic to mold to have an attack.
- Pests: Cockroaches, mice and other household pests can cause asthma attacks.
- Pets: Your pets can cause asthma attacks. If youโre allergic to pet dander (dried skin flakes), breathing in the dander can irritate your airways.
- To***co smoke: If you or someone in your home smokes, you have a higher risk of developing asthma. You should never smoke in enclosed places like the car or home, and the best solution is to quit smoking. Your provider can help.
- Strong chemicals or smells. These things can trigger attacks in some people.
- Certain occupational exposures. You can be exposed to many things at your job, including cleaning products, dust from flour or wood, or other chemicals. These can all be triggers if you have asthma.
8. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ ๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐ฒ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ญ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ก๐ฆ๐?
People with asthma usually have obvious symptoms. These signs and symptoms resemble many respiratory infections:
- Chest tightness, pain or pressure.
- Coughing (especially at night).
- Shortness of breath.
- Wheezing.
With asthma, you may not have all of these symptoms with every flare. You can have different symptoms and signs at different times with chronic asthma. Also, symptoms can change between asthma attacks.
