Asthma Symptoms and Concerns
Symptoms in asthmatics can vary tremendously between patients
with each person having their own unique mix of symptoms
including the severity and how often or how frequently they
affect the sufferer.
To some asthma is an occasional feeling of tightness in the
chest and a cough but for others the attacks can be so severe
that they can become life threatening.
Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease that makes airways
(bronchial tubes) particularly sensitive to irritants, and this
is characterized by...
*A restriction of the air passages in the lungs causing
breathing difficulties due to increased resistance to airflow.
*Rapid changes in airway restrictions.
*The effects can be significantly reversed using drugs that
resemble adrenaline, known as the beta2 agonists.
*Significant reversibility of the restriction problems with
steroid drugs.
*Symptom-free periods, where the patient feels and act fine.
*Frequent occurrence of allergies.
*Bronchial hyper-responsiveness (air being breathed in) to
non-specific stimuli such as cold air or histamine.
The symptoms of asthma include:
*Coughing that may become worse at night or first thing in the
morning causing sleep disruption. Sometimes this is the only
sign of asthma in a child.
*A wheezing or whistling sound when you breathe, especially when
you have a cold or other illness.
*A tightness feeling in the chest, as if someone is squeezing
your chest.
*A feeling that you have a shortness of breath.
*Faster or noisy breathing.
Asthma symptoms can be brought,, triggered, by factors including
exercise such as running or biking, especially during cold
weather, prolonged crying or laughing or when exposed to
allergens and irritants.
All asthmatics will not have these symptoms, those that do will
notice that they may vary from one asthma attack to another and
in severity. Attacks can vary from the mildly annoying, to those
that are serious enough to prevent what you want to do and they
can even be so serious that they are life threatening and you
need to get urgent medical attention.
Symptoms also differ in how often they affect you, some patients
have attacks daily whereas others have problems once a week or
month. With the correct treatment and management, most
asthmatics can expect to have minimal symptoms and can lead
active, normal lives.
Asthma Symptoms of Note
*Asthma is a chronic inflammation that makes airways (the
bronchial tubes) extra sensitive to irritants, and this leads to
difficulty in breathing.
*The predominate symptoms of asthma include coughing, especially
at night, wheezing, a tight feeling in the chest, and shortness
of breath.
*The symptoms vary from person to person, as well as in severity
and frequency.
*With good management and the correct treatment, most asthmatics
can lead active, normal lives.