Asthma - Symptoms & Causes

The common lung disease known as asthma causes the airways to constrict, swell, and occasionally create too much mucus, which can make breathing difficult. The airways become constricted, bloated, and obstructed due to an abundance of mucus. All ages are affected, and while it frequently begins in childhood, it can also appear in adults. This can make breathing challenging, bring on coughing, induce wheezing when exhaling, and shorten one's breath. All ages are affected, and while it frequently begins in childhood, it can also emerge in adults.

Types of Asthma

Based on the underlying reason and the severity of the symptoms, there are many forms of asthma. Asthma is defined by medical professionals as:

Intermittent: When there aren't any asthma attacks, this sort of asthma comes in cycles, allowing the patient to feel normal..

Persistent: When a patient has persistent asthma, they frequently experience symptoms. Symptoms might range from minor to severe. The severity of an asthma attack is determined by how frequently a patient exhibits symptoms.

Adult-onset: This kind of asthma is developed in the patient during the onset of adult age i.e., around 18-20 years.

Pediatric: This kind of asthma, often known as childhood asthma, can affect newborns and toddlers and frequently develops before the age of five. Asthma may be outgrown in kids.

Exercise-induced asthma: This kind is also known as exercise-induced bronchospasm because it is brought on by physical activity.

Occupational asthma: People who work near aggravating compounds are more likely to get this type of asthma.

Asthma-COPD overlap syndrome (ACOS): This kind occurs when a patient has both chronic obstructive lung disease(COPD) and asthma. Breathing becomes challenging in both conditions.

Symptoms of Asthma

Changes that take place right before or right at the start of an asthmatic condition are known as early warning symptoms. These symptoms are the first indications that the asthma is getting worse and may appear before the more typical asthma symptoms. The majority of the time, these symptoms are not severe enough to prevent the person from carrying out regular tasks. However, the patient can avoid an asthma attack or stop it from getting worse by being aware of these signals. Early warning signs of an asthma include:

• Frequent cough, especially at night

• Breathlessness

• Feeling very tired or weak when exercising

• Wheezing or coughing after exercise

• Feeling tired, easily upset, grouchy, or moody

• symptoms of allergies or a cold (sneezing, runny nose, cough, sore throat,nasal congestion, and headache)

• Trouble sleeping

• Other illnesses like bronchitis, vocal cord dysfunction, and even heart failure can resemble the symptoms of asthma.

Causes of Asthma

The major causes of asthma are given below:

Allergies: Asthma risk can increase as a result of allergies.

Respiratory infections: Adolescent children's growing lungs can be harmed by several respiratory illnesses, like the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

Environmental factors: After being exposed to items that irritate the airways, people can acquire asthma.

Genetics: The likelihood of the patient having the condition increases if their family has a history of asthma or allergy conditions.

An individual who comes into contact with irritants may experience an asthma attack. Medical professionals refer to these chemicals as "triggers." It is simpler to prevent asthma episodes when you are aware of what causes asthma. Each person may have distinct triggers. Some general triggers include:

Air pollution: An asthma episode can be triggered by many outdoor factors. Factory emissions, vehicle exhaust, wildfire smoke, and other factors all contribute to air pollution.

Dust mites: These bugs are present in our homes even though we cannot see them. An asthma attack may result from a patient's dust mite allergies.

Exercise: Some people experience attacks when they exercise.

Mould: Mould can grow in damp areas, which can be problematic for those who have asthma.

Pests: In the home, mice, cockroaches, and other pests can trigger asthma episodes.

Pets: Asthma episodes may be triggered by pets. Breathing in pet dander (dry skin flakes) might irritate the airways if a person is allergic to it.

Strong chemicals or smells: These can trigger attacks in some people.

Certain occupational exposures: At work, one may come into contact with a variety of substances, such as cleaning supplies, flour or wood dust, or other chemicals. If the person has asthma, any of these may be triggers.

Asthma attack

An asthma attack is a period of time during which the muscles that surround the airways tense up. Doctors refer to this constriction as bronchospasm. The cells lining the airways create more and thicker mucus than usual during an attack, which causes the lining of the airways to swell or become inflamed. Bronchospasm, inflammation, and mucus production all contribute to symptoms like breathing difficulties, sneezing, breathlessness, and difficulty going about everyday tasks normally.Other symptoms of an asthma attack include:

• Extreme wheezing during both inhalation and exhalation

• Non-stop coughing

• Fast breathing

• Pressure or pain in chest region

• Retractions i.e., tense muscles in the chest and neck

• Problem in speaking

• Panic attack

• Pale, sweaty face

• Blue lips or fingernails

Breathing will become more laboured without prompt treatment, such as a bronchodilator or an inhaler for asthma. The patient won't be able to use the peak flow metre at all as the lungs continue to constrict. Lungs will gradually tighten to the point where there is insufficient airflow to cause wheezing. Unfortunately, some people hesitate to seek quick emergency care when their wheezing stops just to be a sign of recovery. If the patient's asthma is not well treated, they may eventually lose their ability to speak and start to have bluish lips. The colour change (cyanosis) indicates that the blood's oxygen content is steadily declining.

Treatment

Treatment can help control the symptoms so the patient is able to live a normal, active life.There are options to help manage asthma which include:

• Bronchodilators/inhalers: The muscles around the airways are relaxed by these drugs. The airways freely move air since the muscles are relaxed. These medications are used for both intermittent and chronic asthma, and they treat the symptoms as they arise.These are of two types:

Short-acting bronchodilators. Acute asthma symptoms are swiftly reduced or eliminated by short-acting bronchodilators. They last between three and six hours. A rescue inhaler is another term for a short-acting bronchodilator. Inhalers are plastic holders for pharmaceutical canisters with a mouthpiece. An inhaler delivers a steady dose of medication when the patient sprays it.

Long-acting bronchodilators. A 12-hour period is maintained by long-acting bronchodilators. To prevent asthma episodes, people use these inhalers every day.

• Anti-inflammatory medicines: These drugs lessen mucus formation and swelling in the airways. They facilitate the passage of air in and out of the lungs. To manage or avoid the symptoms of persistent asthma, they are prescribed for daily use.

• Biologic therapies for asthma: When severe asthma symptoms don't go away despite using an inhaler correctly, these are utilised.

• Surgery

For people with severe asthma, a technique called bronchial thermoplasty might be recommended. It functions effectively, and there are no significant safety issues. During a bronchial thermoplasty, the patient will be sedated or put to sleep using a general anaesthetic. A slender, flexible tube is inserted into the lungs after being passed via the throat. The muscles around the airways are then heated to assist prevent constriction and the onset of asthma symptoms.

• Complementary therapies

Many complementary therapies, such as breathing exercises like the Papworth technique and the Buteyko method, traditional Chinese herbal medicine, acupuncture, ionisers, manual therapies like chiropractic, homoeopathy, dietary supplements, etc., have been proposed as potential remedies for asthma.