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Asthma

Asthmatic bronchus (asthma) is a chronic reactive airway disorder involving episodic, reversible airway obstruction resulting from bronchospasms, increased mucus secretions, and mucosal edema. An asthma attack may include coughing, chest tightness, wheezing, and trouble breathing. The attack happens in your body’s airways, which are the paths that carry air to your lungs. As the air moves through your lungs, the airways become smaller, like the branches of a tree are smaller than the tree trunk. During an asthma attack, the sides of the airways in your lungs swell and the airways shrink. Less air gets in and out of your lungs, and mucous that your body makes clogs up the airways even more. It usually results from an allergic reaction or other forms of hypersensitivity. Affecting patients of all ages, symptoms of asthma include wheezing, chest tightness, difficulty breathing and coughing. From nebulizer machines and humidifiers, to asthma allergy medications. Signs and Symptoms: Chest Tightness; Coughing with thick, clear, or yellow mucus; Cyanosis (late sign); Diaphoresis; Nasal flaring; Pursed-lip breathing; Sudden dyspnea; Tachycardia; Tachypnea; Use of accessory muscles for breathing; Wheezing accompanied by coarse rhonchi. Cause: Obstruction or narrowing of the airways, which are typically inflamed and hyperresponsive to variety of stimuli.
Therapy Options: Inhaled steroids such as triamcinolone acetonide (Azmacort); Leukotriene inhibitors such as montelukast (Singulair); Long-acting bronchodilators such as formoterol (Foradil Aerolizer); Mast cell stabilizers, such as cromolyn sodium (Intal) or nedocromil (Alocril); Aminophyllin (Truphylline) or theophylline (Slo-bid); Short-acting bronchodilators, such as albuterol (Proventil) or levalbuterol (Xopenex); Oral or I.V. corticosteroids; Mechanical ventilation; Nebulized atropine; Omalizumab (Xolair); Bronchial thermoplasty.