We can say that bronchial asthma is a fairly common disease in the “family” of lung diseases. First and foremost, what is asthma? This is a chronic pathology of the bronchi and lungs, from which about 9% of the world’s population suffers.
Asthma is characterized by narrowing of the lumen of the bronchi due to a specific allergic or sensitization reaction of the body. The course of the disease is divided into two periods – the period of exacerbation and the period of relaxation of the disease.
Doctors evaluate the severity of bronchial asthma only during the relaxation period in order to make a more accurate diagnosis. Diagnostic methods in this case are a measurement of the number of seizures in a patient at night and during the day, determination of impaired activity of the patient, identification of sleep disorders, measurement of the volume of exhaled and inhaled air. The examination is carried out using special instruments.
According to the severity, bronchial asthma is divided into permanent, episodic, severe, mild or moderate forms. Having a little understanding of what asthma is, is it time to find out where it comes from?
Causes of bronchial asthma
The causes of this disease are many, and it can develop in various ways. But common among all possible options is that against the background of allergic reactions of the body, the sensitivity and reactivity of the bronchi changes. Many doctors believe that the causes of bronchial asthma are heredity. From how sensitive your bronchi are, it will depend on whether asthma manifests itself or not.
Scientists managed to divide this disease into two types, the main differences of which depend on the etiology of bronchial asthma. This is atopic and infectious allergic asthma. At the beginning of their development, these types of diseases are very different from each other, but subsequently acquire common symptoms.
At the first stages of the development of atopic asthma, the body, or rather, the immune system, first encounters an allergen, recognizes it, and produces antibodies to combat the “unwanted guest”. As already mentioned, not everyone has a risk of getting asthma, since the human body is in contact with various allergens every minute (such as dust, pollen, wool, etc.), but not everyone develops lung disease. An important role in the formation of atopic asthma is played by the main “unfavorable” factor – heredity.
The development of infectious-allergic asthma is slightly different from the development of an atopic type of disease. This form of bronchial disease occurs only in people with initially inflamed or diseased bronchi, due to which their structure changes (clearance decreases) and reactivity. In this case, the patient reacts sharply to external stimuli – a dry cough appears in the cold, when inhaling a strong odor, smoke, etc.
Bronchial asthma treatment
The main method of treating bronchial asthma is drug therapy. Fortunately, the variety of pharmaceuticals on the shelves of pharmacies makes it possible to choose the type of medicine in a form convenient for use: tablets, aerosols, solutions.
Due to the wide range of medicines, people are often lost in choosing the right drug. Therefore, you should not take risks – you need to go to the doctor’s appointment, undergo an examination and be treated with the medications prescribed by the specialist.
A long-known fact – prevention is better than cure. As mentioned above, asthma is infectious-allergic and atopic. Therefore, the best prevention of bronchial asthma is consultation with an allergist, timely adequate treatment and preventing the development of chronic respiratory diseases.
How to protect yourself from allergens? You must determine if you are allergic to anything. To do this, consult an allergist for advice. If an allergen is identified, try to contact it as little as possible.