Have you ever seen a person yelling “ I cannot breath “ and then takes his medication right away to feel better. This is how we see the asthmatic people everyday, but what is really that asthma disease? Is it curable? Asthma is a respiratory disease at which the airways of the patient becomes narrowed and nearly clogged due to the secretion of extra mucous. This abnormality causes shortness of breath, wheezing and coughing.
Asthma is classified into many stages according to its severity, the causing factor and the patient’s age. For some people asthma is so mild, they could get an attack every 1-2 weeks if not at all. People with mild asthma get an attack only when they are doing something major that may affect their breathing. On the other hand, for some others, asthma is so severe that they can not perform their normal daily activities, it could even awaken them at night and prevent them from sleeping. Asthma is a chronic disease and can not be cured but the symptoms could be reduced by medications and following up with the physician. Asthma is classified into many types and it may be triggered by many factors.
Types of Asthma
First, Childhood Asthma, which occurs in its most severe form during childhood. Childhood Asthma could be triggered by any of the following factors: cold air, stress, second-hand smoking, any respiratory tract infection such as common cold or bronchitis and air pollution.
Second, Adult Onset Asthma. This type of asthma occurs during adulthood. In most cases, the symptoms are persistent in this type. Adult Onset Asthma could be triggered by any of the following: obesity, smoking, stress, exposure to certain allergens or any respiratory tract infection.
Third type is Occupational Asthma, this type of asthma is accompanied by the extra ordinary work environment of the patient. Sometimes, people work in certain factories, hospitals, farms or zoos so they could be exposed to chemicals and pollutants on a daily basis, this affects respiration and induce what we call occupational asthma. Car mechanics, carpenters, factory workers and hair dressers are the most common occupations associated with occupational asthma. On the other hand, working in any of these occupations does not mean that you will get occupational asthma, there are some risk factors that make you a candidate for it such as having any allergic disease or smoking.
The last type of asthma is the Seasonal Asthma, which rarely happens in Singapore. This type of asthma occurs as a response to the presence of some allergens in some seasons as pollen allergy that’s common in spring. People with Seasonal Asthma experience intense attacks during the season they are allergic to.
Diagnosis and Treatments
During diagnosis of asthma patients, if the physician suspects asthma, he will do a Spirometry test. This test assesses the respiration and concludes whether this patient has a respiratory defect. If yes, the physician will give the patient a drug that acts on the dilatation of the lung’s bronchi and hence, better respiration. He then performs a second Spirometry test. If the Spirometry results improved then the patient has asthma.
Asthma treatments mainly consists of inhaled corticosteroids and long acting beta agonists. These are two drug classes that act on the dilatation of the bronchi and counteract the inflammation present. Furthermore, the patient should avoid getting exposed to any smoke and known allergens, exercise regularly, avoid stress and always be hydrated. In conclusion, asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease that could be well controlled by medications
Stay safe and take your scheduled dose!
