Asthma is a chronic and inveterate inflammatory lung ailment which is exemplified by difficulty in breathing as it makes the bronchial tubes hyper responsive or excessively sensitive to irritants like dust, fumes, glossy oil paints etc. Asthma is emerging at a very high rate and the diverse issue of environment like pollution, centrally heated, double-glazed residential areas (breeding grounds for house dust mites) etc could be blamed for it.

Asthma is an ailment, which is not only found in adults, but even children can be diagnosed with this leading persistent sickness. It is thankfully a non- contagious disease but it could be transferred by parents to their children through their genes.

The medical community had made it clear long ago that it is not possible to cure asthma. However, asthma could be controlled and should be controlled in order to live an energetic, lively and healthy life. But this is just a partial truth as there are several cases where patients have grown out of asthma.

Doctors commonly advise patients suffering from asthma to go for regular check ups in order to control this ailment. Controlling asthma means that the patients should stay away from irritants, which perturb their bronchial tubes and take appropriate, reliable and regular medicines as prescribed by the doctor.

When the sufferers encounter worsening of signs and symptoms, then they experience asthma attack or episode. During an asthma attack, the bronchial tubes become irritated due to some irritants like dust, fumes, glossy oil paints etc and thus react by narrowing the airway, resulting in rising resistance to airflow. As inflammation rises, the bronchial tube becomes narrower and more swollen. This whole process prohibits flow of air passage to and from lungs thereby, causing symptoms of asthma.

Asthma is a chronic, inveterate and persistent condition. This means that asthma may attack after a long period of time. The foremost symptoms of asthma are

• Frequent coughing and wheezing (specially at night).
• A tight feeling in chest.
• Breathlessness
• Faster or noisy breaths.
• Rapid and substantial changes in airway blockage
• Rise in resistance to airflow.
• Recurrent occurrence of allergy.
• Hyper responsiveness of bronchial tubes to irritants.

The variance in symptoms of asthma patients could differ

1. From person to person,
2. Rate of severity
3. Time of occurrence

The chief causes which initiate asthma are allergies to house dust mites and pets, childhood infections, effect of modern environment (air pollution), a family history of asthma, occupational asthma caused by irritants at work, etc.

As far as treatment of asthma is concerned, there are two main types of medicines available.

Relievers are quick relief medicines that give short term but rapid treatment. They are consumed when symptoms of asthma get worse.

Preventers are long-term control medicines. They have long-term effects on this ailment but have to be taken everyday in order to prevent asthma attack.

Drugs are available to treat asthma, which is in the form of hormones. The two hormones are-

Adrenaline (epinephrine in USA ) is a reliever which is pumped in blood stream. It works from middle of adrenal glands near our kidney, making pulse rate and heart pump and prepares the body for emergency action.

Hydrocortisone (a steroid) is a preventer coming out from the outer part of adrenal glands called cortex. It slowly allows the lining of air tubes to become normal in asthma patients.

In case of asthma patients, the best way to consume the medicines is by inhaling them. At the time of attack, inhalers are the preeminent form of medication. Other long term medications include inhaled corticosteroids, long-acting beta agonists, leukotriene modifiers (like montelukast, zafirlukast and zileuton etc), cromolyn and nedocromil etc.

Asthma patients should visit their doctors regularly in order to control this ailment as the rule should be “patients should control their asthma and not allow asthma to control them.”