Asthma; Causes and Treatment

Asthma is an ailment in which sudden inflammation of the airways causes airflow into and out of the lungs to be rigorously restricted. During an attack, the muscles of the bronchial tree get tight and the inner lining of the air passage swells.

This restricts normal air flow and the increasing effort to inhale produces that characteristic wheezing sound.

What causes Asthma

Although some believe it to be a hereditary disorder, asthma is commonly caused by the inhalation of allergens.

Most common ones are:

  • pollens,
  • pet dander,
  • dust mites, molds and
  • hazardous chemicals.

It may also be triggered by respiratory infections, unplanned exercise, sudden alteration of ambient temperature, tobacco smoke and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

Doctors have found that even a higher percentage of eosinophilia in the blood has a distinct relationship with asthma patients but no further light has been given on the subject.

However research on the subject is being carried out. Reduction of the substance in blood count invariably reduces asthma attacks.

What do you do if I have Asthma?

There is no permanent cure for asthma, though some medications offer temporary relief. Following the age-old dictum “Prevention is better than cure” several preventive measures may be taken to avert asthma attacks.

These include elimination of provoking allergens from the environment, reducing eosinophilia from total blood count, use of nebulizers or metered dose inhalers (albuterol, terbutaline and meta-proterenol), salt pipe inhalation, aerosolized atropine and related compounds immediately before or during an attack.

So if you have had an asthma attack before, you must always carry medicines and inhalers along to be on the safe side. You never know when the next attack may hit.

Conclusion

Millions of people around the world suffer from Asthma but since it is not a proclaimed killer like Hepatitis B or Cancer, no serious medical attention appears to have been given to this agonizing ailment.

It is more prevalent among children than adults and in USA alone, the number of people suffering from the disease is alarming. Plus when you add up the numbers of medical shingles, then the problem intensifies even further.

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