What is asthma?
Asthma is a serious condition that affects your ability to breathe. If you suffer from asthma, the airways that deliver air into your lungs sometimes swell, grow narrower, and get clogged up with mucus. This leaves you with very tiny spaces for air to pass through.
Asthma occurs in flare-ups that are also called asthma attacks. Most of the time, you’ll breathe normally. But, when an asthma attack starts you’ll suddenly have to fight just to draw in any air at all.
Asthma sufferers sometimes say that asthma flare-ups feel like being a fish out of water, or like they’re trying to breathe using just a straw. Asthma can affect anyone, but it’s most common in children.
What are the symptoms of asthma?
Difficulty breathing is the main symptom, but you may also experience other problems, including:
- Coughing
- Wheezing
- Feeling of a weight on your chest
- Chest tightness or pain
An asthma attack can cause other physical symptoms, including lightheadedness or even fainting from lack of air.
What causes asthma attacks?
Asthma attacks can start for many different reasons, but once you learn your particular triggers, it may be much easier to minimize them. The most common asthma triggers include:
- Pet dander
- Pollen
- Smoke
- Infections, including bronchitis, common colds, and the flu
- Heavy exercise
- Very cold temperatures
If you’ve noticed asthma symptoms after exposure to any of these things, or you have asthma symptoms at other times, it’s important to see your Sterling Medical Center provider for testing as soon as possible.
How does the doctor diagnose asthma?
Your Sterling Medical Center provider can do simple testing on-site to diagnose asthma. The most common test for asthma is spirometry, in which you inhale and exhale air into a device that measures the air flow. Your care team can combine these results with an exam and symptom descriptions to make an asthma diagnosis.
Is there a cure for asthma?
Although there’s not a permanent cure for asthma, there are many highly effective tools for asthma management. With your care provider’s help, you can greatly lessen the intensity and frequency of your asthma attacks.
Options for asthma treatments include breathing treatments either at home or in-office, oral medication like prednisone, and inhaled medications for both emergency and daily use. Often, a combination of these treatments works very well.
Use the online scheduler or call Sterling Medical Center for asthma help today.
