2002-11-24 - 1:57 p.m.
I dont have sever asthma all the time, but it can affect me badly theses days. I take a whole host of drugs ever day and steriods when i have upper/lower respiritary problems.
Here is some info on Astham, it does affect every one diffrently ...
What Is Asthma?
Have you, or someone you know, been diagnosed with asthma? If so, you probably have lots of questions.
You may wonder, for example, just what asthma is. The medical definition of asthma is simple, but the condition itself is quite complex.
Asthma is a chronic (long-term) inflammation of the airways that causes the following symptoms:
Shortness of breath
Tightness in the chest
Coughing
Wheezing
Asthma has no set pattern. Its symptoms:
Can be mild, moderate or severe
Can vary from person to person
Can flare up from time to time and then not appear for long periods
Can vary from one episode to the next
The cause of asthma is not known, and currently there is no cure. However, there are many things you can do to control it.
Breathing: Normal Airway Versus Asthma Airway
In someone with normal lung function, air is inhaled through the nose and mouth. It passes through the trachea (also called the windpipe) before moving into the bronchi (large airways), which are branching tubes leading away from the trachea. The bronchi branch into smaller and smaller tubes, ending in many small sacs called alveoli. It's in the alveoli that oxygen, which the body needs, is passed to the blood, while carbon dioxide, which the body doesn't, is removed from it.
People with asthma often have trouble breathing when they're in the presence of what are called "triggers." When someone with asthma has an asthma attack, it means that the flow of air is obstructed as it passes in and out of the lungs. This happens because of one or both of the following:
The lining of the airways becomes inflamed (irritated, reddened and swollen), and may produce more mucous.
The muscles that surround the airways become sensitive and start to twitch and tighten, causing the airways to narrow.
Both of these factors cause the airways to narrow, making it difficult for air to pass in and out of them.
The airways of someone with asthma are inflamed, to some degree, the more inflammed the more sensitive the airway becomes. This leads to an increase in breathing difficulty.
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