Asthma, treatment of asthma & prevntion

It begins with coughing and wheezing I immediately feel a pain in my chest. Breathing becomes rapid and shallow, and you feel short of breath. These are common symptoms of an asthma attack Asthma affects more than 300 million people worldwide and kills about 250,000 people each year. 

But why do people get asthma and how deadly is this disease? Asthma affects the respiratory system, particularly the smaller airways such as the bronchi and bronchioles These airways have an inner lining called the mucosa surrounded by a layer of smooth muscle In people with asthma the airways are chronically inflamed making them hyper-responsive to specific triggers Some of the many asthma triggers include tobacco smoke, pollen, dust, fragrances, exercise, cold weather, stress, and even the common cold When people with asthma are exposed to these triggers an asthma attack or exacerbation can occur But how exactly do such everyday factors lead to an asthma attack If an asthmatic is exposed to a trigger the smooth rings of muscle that circle the small airways in their lungs contract and become narrow Simultaneously the trigger worsens inflammation causing the mucosal lining to become more swollen and secrete more mucus Under normal conditions the body uses this mucus to trap and clear particles like pollen or dust but during an asthma attack it blocks the narrowed airways making it even harder to breathe These effects lead to these symptoms of asthma Smooth muscle constriction results in the feeling of chest tightness Excess mucus and increased inflammation can cause coughing And the wheezing noise? That happens because as the airways constrict air whistles as it passes through the narrowed space These symptoms may make a person feel like they're running out of air Yet counterintuitively during an asthma attack the inflammation can make it harder to exhale than inhale Over time this leads to an excess of air in the lungs a phenomenon known as hyperinflation The trapping of air inside the lungs forces the body to work harder to move air in and out of them Over time this can lead to reduced oxygen delivery to the body's organs and tissues. 

 If the body cannot cope with a severe asthma attack and is left untreated, it can lead to death from oxygen deprivation. So what can be done to prevent these unpleasant and deadly attacks in asthma sufferers? One way is to reduce the presence of triggers Unfortunately the world is an unpredictable place and exposure to triggers can't always be controlled This is where inhalers the primary treatment for asthma come in. 

These medications help asthmatics both control and prevent asthma symptoms Inhalers transport medication along the affected airways using a liquid mist or fine powder to treat the problem at its source They come in two forms There reliever medications that treat symptoms immediately and contain beta-agonists Beta-agonists relax constricted muscles allowing the airways to widen so more air can travel into and out of the lungs The other form of inhalers serves as preventive medications which treat asthma symptoms over the long term and contain corticosteroids Corticosteroids reduce airway sensitivity and inflammation so asthma can be kept under control They're also crucial in preventing long-term damage from chronic inflammation which can cause scarring of the airways. 

Inhalers are known to be very effective and have helped many people live better lives Although we have me a long way in improving how we treat and diagnose asthma we still don't know its exact causes We currently believe that a combination of genetic and environmental factors play a role potentially acting during early childhood Recent research has even linked poverty to asthma incidents This may be due to reasons ranging from exposure to additional pollutants and environmental irritants to difficulties in obtaining medical care or treatment As our understanding of asthma improves we can continue to find better ways to keep people's airways happy and healthy.

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