Asthma: 10 Common Questions Answered
For most parents and kids, spring means sunny warm weather, outdoor sports and more outside playtime. For many others, spring also means more asthma flare-ups more time outside means more exposure to asthma triggers, and more sports means more exercise-induced asthma.
Although childhood asthma is common, many people really dont know much about it. So we thought wed answer some common questions about what asthma is and how its treated.
How To Help When Emotions Trigger Asthma
Emotions and stressors are much less likely to trigger asthma when it is well-managed.
Effective and ongoing management means taking your preventer medication in the way it is prescribed this could be daily or twice daily and keeping your reliever with you.
Having an up-to-date written Asthma Action Plan and following it as symptoms increase or decrease is critical, especially for children.
We recommend combining psychological and medical care, medical monitoring, individualised asthma education and adequate community support, if needed.
Pleasant and unpleasant emotions are part of life. Laughter, crying, stress or surprise can spur us on to do more, to take charge or have more fun.
Find out more about the links between asthma and emotions;here
Visit our website for more information and resources about;asthma in children.
Bird Healthcare and Flo are campaign partners of Asthma Australia and have not been involved in the development of this web page/content.
What Are Some Common Allergens And Irritants And Whats The Difference
Asthma flare-ups are caused by triggers which can include substances, weather conditions or activities that irritate and inflame the airways in the lungs. Triggers can change from season to season and as kids get older.
One of the most common asthma triggers is allergens, which can include mold, dust mites, cockroaches, pollen, animal dander and feathers. If kids inhale something theyre allergic to, this can inflame the airways and cause a flare-up. If you can help them to avoid the allergens that affect their asthma or minimize their presence in your home, this will likely lead to fewer asthma flare-ups. To do this, some homeowners could consider getting an air conditioning unit installed in their homes. Air Handlers are responsible for moving air around the house, so its important to find one of those. That will improve air quality and, hopefully, make it easier for your child to breathe comfortably. A good rule of thumb is to have your air conditioner tuned up every few months so that dust particles dont affect your space. In case of a malfunction, you can have the malfunctioning part repaired so that your house remains dust-free. That said, if you want AC service in Denton and clean air for your home, you might consider visiting jakservices.com/denton-air-conditioning-repair-service/ or similar websites.
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What To Do If You Have An Asthma Attack
If you think you’re having an asthma attack, you should:
Never be frightened of calling for help in an emergency.
Try to take the details of your medicines with you to hospital if possible.
If your symptoms improve and you do not need to call 999, get an urgent same-day appointment to see a GP or asthma nurse.
This advice is not for people on SMART or MART treatment. If this applies to you, ask a GP or asthma nurse what to do if you have an asthma attack.
When To Seek Emergency Care For An Asthma Attack
Although some asthma attacks are mild and easily managed at home, severe cases should be taken very seriously and treated immediately by an emergency medical professional. Even more mild cases may need medical attention if the symptoms do not settle after a few minutes. If you notice the asthma sufferer is beginning to turn blue in the lips or nails or is becoming increasingly dizzy, take them to an emergency room near you as quickly as possible or call 911. Asthma medicine may need to be administered immediately.
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Take Action Now To Lower Your Risk Of An Asthma Attack
If youre getting more asthma symptoms its a sign that your airways are getting more inflamed and narrow. This makes it harder for air to get through and means an asthma attack is more likely.
The sooner you can treat the inflammation in your airways, the sooner you can lower your risk of an asthma attack.
See your doctor today
- Ask the receptionist for an urgent same day appointment. Tell them your asthmas getting worse and you need to see a GP or asthma nurse for urgent advice to avoid having an asthma attack.
- If you cant get an urgent same day appointment, or your GP surgery is closed, . They may be able to arrange for you to be seen at a walk-in centre or by an out of hours doctor.;
Can You Predict A Flare
You can predict some flare-ups, but it might take a bit of;detective work.
Some flare-ups happen suddenly, after;a person is;exposed to a trigger like being around someone who is smoking. Flare-ups also happen when problems in the airways build up over time. That can happen when a;persons;asthma is not well controlled.
Flare-ups need to;be treated at their earliest stages. So;its important to know early warning signs .
Clues that a flare-up might happen;are different for everyone. They might even be different with each asthma flare-up.
Early warning signs include:
- coughing, even if you dont have a cold
- throat clearing
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How Is An Asthma Flare
The best thing to do first if your asthma symptoms are getting worse is to use your rescue or quick-relief medicine. Ask your doctor if you’re not sure what to use for quick-relief medicine. The usual inhaler dose is two to four puffs every 20 minutes for a total of three doses, or one nebulizer treatment if you have a home nebulizer.
You should be able to tell how serious the flare-up is after you use your quick-relief medicine. If you have a peak flow meter, check your PEF again after you use the quick-relief medicine. If your PEF is still very low, your flare-up is serious.
Your doctor may have given you a written Asthma Action Plan with directions for treating mild, moderate and severe flare-ups. If you don’t have an action plan, ask your doctor for written directions about treating asthma flare-ups. If you have the symptoms of a serious flare-up or if your PEF is less than 50 percent of your personal best, call your doctor right away or go directly to the nearest hospital emergency room .
What Are Early Warning Signs Of A Psa Flare
Patients reported noticing when a flare was coming on, and this could be seen more clearly in patients who had had PsA for a longer time, indicating the understanding that comes with experience. Those patients with shorter disease duration were more likely to describe their flares as appearing with no warning. Once recognized as a pre-flare state, patients reported strategies for managing the pre-flare, adapting their activity level and lowering stress.2
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How Do Healthcare Providers Diagnose Asthma
Your healthcare provider will review your medical history, including information about your parents and siblings. Your provider will also ask you about your symptoms. Your provider will need to know any history of allergies, eczema and other lung diseases.
Your healthcare provider may order a chest X-ray, blood test or skin test. Your provider may order spirometry. This test measures airflow through your lungs.
Symptoms Of An Asthma Attack
Signs that you may be having an asthma attack include:
- your symptoms are getting worse
- your reliever inhaler is not helping
- you’re too breathless to speak, eat or sleep
- your breathing is getting faster and it feels like you cannot catch your breath
- your peak flow score is lower than normal
- children may also complain of a tummy or chest ache
The symptoms will not necessarily occur suddenly. In fact, they often come on slowly over a few hours or days.
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What Is An Asthma Action Plan
Your healthcare provider will work with you to develop an asthma action plan. This plan tells you how and when to use your medicines. It also tells you what to do if your asthma gets worse and when to seek emergency care. Understand the plan and ask your healthcare provider about anything you dont understand.
What Are Ways To Manage Symptoms Of A Flare
Management of flares involves self-medication, self-help techniques, resting, seeking medical attention, avoiding certain activities, or alternatively, just continuing on. As people live with PsA and begin to learn their bodys signs of a pre-flare state, they learn to self-manage and, in many cases, can avoid the full flare.2
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Uncontrolled Asthma Vs Severe Asthma: How To Get The Right Diagnosis
- Asthma
- Lung Health and Diseases
More than 25 million Americans struggle with asthma, a chronic condition that makes breathing difficult. Whether you have lived with asthma since childhood or developed it later in life, it is important to monitor your symptoms and avoid your triggers to manage the disease. Many times, regular flare-ups can be treated with a combination of quick-relief and controller medications. Unfortunately, this may not be enough to get your symptoms under control.
If you feel asthma is interfering with your life, it can be frustrating to know what to do next. This is when it may be time to talk to your doctor about the possibility of severe asthma.
Daily symptoms, such as chest tightness, shortness of breath, coughing and wheezing, are signs of uncontrolled asthma and may require the use of quick-relief medication a few times a week or even daily. In addition, you may commonly experience nighttime flare-ups and may even have to visit the emergency room. As you might expect, with these symptoms you may miss work, stop exercising, and have difficulty performing daily tasks. If you have signs of uncontrolled asthma as listed above, you will want to discuss this with you physician because you may be able to find a solution.
But what if you continue to struggle?
After An Asthma Attack
You should see a GP or asthma nurse within 48 hours of leaving hospital, or ideally on the same day if you did not need hospital treatment.
About 1 in 6 people treated in hospital for an asthma attack need hospital care again within 2 weeks, so it’s important to discuss how you can reduce your risk of future attacks.
Talk to a doctor or nurse about any changes that may need to be made to manage your condition safely.
For example, the dose of your treatment may need to be adjusted or you may need to be shown how to use your inhaler correctly.
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How Centric Healthcare Can Help
Asthma attacks can be particularly worrisome for seniors who have a variety of medical conditions. Frequent attacks can exacerbate some conditions and diminish the overall quality of life. Among the services we offer is medication therapy management. As an essential component of home health care medication therapy management can ensure that you or your loved one will have the proper dosage of medication to control asthma episodes. Our trained staff can recognize changes in health that require a doctors evaluation. These services can bring you peace of mind, knowing that your needs are being thoroughly monitored. We can also customize home senior care services that will meet your needs.
Contact Central Healthcare today to learn more about how we can help manage asthma or provide you with other home health services.
Whats An Asthma Flare
Kids with asthma might have days with no breathing problems at all. Thats a relief for parents and for kids because it means that the asthma is under control.
But when asthma symptoms like wheezing, coughing, or shortness of breath become more severe, more frequent, or both, its known as an asthma flare-up .
If the flare-up is severe, a person might:
- struggle to breathe or have rapid breathing even when sitting still
- be unable to speak more than a few words at a time without pausing
- have retractions in the neck and chest
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What Is A Copd Exacerbation
A COPD exacerbation, or flare-up, occurs when your COPD respiratory symptoms worsen suddenly. You may have trouble breathing, cough and wheeze more than usual and have trouble sleeping.;
Exacerbations are typically caused by a viral or bacterial lung infection, but they can also be triggered by things or situations that cause breathing difficulties, such as:;
Frequent flare-ups can eventually lead to:;
Asthma Allergies And Covid
Throughout the pandemic, having asthma was considered a risk factor for severe COVID-19. But new data show that people with asthma are relatively protected from severe COVID-19, said Geoffrey Chupp, MD, professor of medicine in the Section of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine at Yale School of Medicine .
We looked at 8,000 hospital admissions of patients with COVID-19, and we found that the patients who were diagnosed with asthma – about 10% of the patients – were more likely to survive compared to those people who didnt have asthma, Chupp said. He emphasized that the patients had asthma, not smoking-related lung diseases such as emphysema and COPD.
Its possible that some of the medications used for asthma helped to reduce the inflammation that COVID-19 causes, Chupp said. Its also likely that the type of immune response most asthmatics have, the allergic response, protected them from severe lung damage, he added.
However, after these patients recovered from COVID-19, their asthma became reactivated. As they healed, their natural immune response came back with more activity, explained Chupp. Were seeing a fair amount of post-COVID uncontrolled asthma. Most people do well but some have this persistence, a kind of long-hauler problem, although most of them will get better with time.
Asthma, Allergies & Pollen
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How Emotions Can Contribute To Asthma Flare
Home>>How emotions can contribute to asthma flare-ups
In light of our Back-to-School campaign, we wanted to touch on the subject of emotions and asthma and how attending school doesnt come as easily for some children.
It is an exciting time returning to school after the long holidays. There are old friends to see and new friends to meet. But for some kids, this can be an emotional time and the realities may not sink in until after the first week. Some of you may not know, but emotions can be a trigger for asthma, leading to increased symptoms and flare ups.
Were not just talking about stress, anxiety or depression were also talking about crying and laughter! In fact, heightened emotions in general can contribute to an asthma episode.
My Child Has Asthma How Can I Protect Them
Evolving research indicates that most children who contract COVID-19 have mild symptoms or no symptoms, but they can be carriers of COVID-19. It is, therefore,; especially important to limit their contact with others, and particularly with vulnerable groups, such as older adults and those with underlying health conditions. It is important to note that some children do develop serious symptoms of the virus.
- Keep your children home and avoid contact with other people. Consider hosting virtual playdates to help keep them entertained and socially engaged.
- Ensure that you have a 30-day supply of your childs asthma medications on hand.;
- Ensure that your child is taking their prescribed medications as prescribed, both controller and reliever, and that their Kids Asthma Action Plan is being followed.
- Check to ensure your childs inhaler technique is done properly.;
- Be a role model for good hygiene at home, at work and in the community to help protect you, your family and your asthamatic child.;
- Encourage frequent hand washing and teach children to avoid touching their mouths and faces.;
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces and items like toys and electronics, as young children tend to put their fingers or objects in their mouth.
- Launder frequently touched items like plush toys, bedding and towels.;
- When returning from work keep your distance from your family until you have changed clothes and washed your hands thoroughly. Then go in for the hug.
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How To Stop An Asthma Attack
Learning what to do in an asthma attack is particularly important for patients who have developed asthma recently as well as for caregivers who may not be sure of what they need to do. The first line of defense is working with your doctor to develop a management plan that includes medication and ways to help you avoid triggers to minimize the possibility of attacks. Your treatment plan will likely change over time as asthma often changes over time, so expect periodic adjustments to keep daily symptoms under control. Asthma that isnt well-controlled leads to regular attacks as lingering lung inflammation means you could have a flare-up at any time.
Does Asthma Get Worse Lying Down
The exact reason that asthma is worse during sleep are not known, but there are explanations that include increased exposure to allergens; cooling of the airways; being in a reclining position; and hormone secretions that follow a circadian pattern. Sleep itself may even cause changes in bronchial function.
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