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Why Did My Asthma Get Worse

Can Asthma Reappear In Adults After Disappearing Years Ago

Why Asthma and Allergies are Worse at Night…

Asthma is usually diagnosed in childhood. In many patients however, the symptoms will disappear or are significantly reduced after puberty. After age 20, symptoms may begin to reappear.

Researchers have tracked this tendency for reappearing asthma and found that people with childhood asthma tend to experience reappearing symptoms through their 30s and 40s at various levels of severity.

Regardless of whether your asthma is active, you should continue to avoid your known triggers and keep your rescue medications or prescriptions up-to-date and handy in case you need them.

Nocturnal Asthma And Children

Asthma is more common in children than in adults and is the most common chronic disease in children worldwide. Accurately diagnosing and treating nocturnal asthma in children is especially important because the effects of nocturnal asthma, like loss of sleep and daytime sleepiness, are associated with behavioral and developmental difficulties.

Unfortunately, nocturnal asthma often goes undiagnosed in children because they tend to underestimate or not report their nighttime symptoms. For this reason, its helpful for parents to monitor and report back to the doctor any concerning symptoms in children. These symptoms may include wheezing, disturbed sleep, daytime sleepiness, and difficulties concentrating at school.

When Should I Go To The Er

Don’t be embarrassed to get medical help if you think you need it. These situations call for emergency care:

  • You take your asthma medicine and your flare-up doesn’t get any better.
  • You feel a little better after taking your medicine, but your symptoms come back quickly.
  • You have frequent wheezing, a lasting cough, or chest pain.
  • Your lips and fingernails are bluish or grayish.
  • You have trouble breathing, talking, or walking.

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About Chemical Irritants And Asthma

Chemical irritants are found in some products in your house and may trigger asthma. Your asthma or your child’s asthma may be worse around products such as cleaners, paints, adhesives, pesticides, cosmetics or air fresheners. Chemical irritants are also present in schools and can be found in commonly used cleaning supplies and educational kits.

Chemical irritants may exacerbate asthma. At sufficient concentrations in the air, many products can trigger a reaction.

What Is Good Asthma Care

Asthma Attacks: What To Do

Your doctor or nurse will tailor your asthma treatment to your symptoms. Sometimes you may need to be on higher levels of medication than at others.

You should be offered:

  • care at your GP surgery provided by doctors and nurses trained in asthma management
  • full information about your condition and how to control it
  • involvement in making decisions about your treatment
  • regular checks to ensure your asthma is under control and your treatment is right for you
  • a written personal asthma action plan agreed with your doctor or nurse

It is also important that your GP or pharmacist teaches you how to properly use your inhaler, as this is an important part of good asthma care.

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Is Your Asthma Getting Worse Here Are Tips For Preventing And Treating Asthma

Do you feel like your asthma has been getting worse recently? Thereâs nothing worse than the feeling of suddenly being unable to catch your breath. Fear, anxiety, and panic are terms that hardly describe the emotions one experiences during an asthma attack. While asthma attacks can be debilitating, options for preventing and treating asthma can help reduce the likelihood of a severe attack.

If you are suffering from asthma, do not despair. Consider some of the possible solutions and prevention methods listed below, and know when you should seek the help of a physician.

How To Manage Asthma At Night

  • There is no definitive cure for asthma at night, but routine asthma medications like inhaled steroids can help in reducing inflammation and preventing nocturnal symptoms. A long-acting bronchodilator or inhaled corticosteroid can effectively prevent bronchospasm and symptoms of asthma.

  • For people with GERD, the medication that reduces acid production in the stomach should be taken after consulting doctors.

  • Avoiding potential allergy triggers like dust mites, pollens, animal dander, or feathers can help prevent allergies and asthma.

  • A peak flow meter can monitor lung function throughout the day and night. After getting the altered pattern of lung function, the doctor can help plan and resolve the nighttime asthma symptoms.

  • Other measures to prevent worsening asthma at night include sleeping with a humidifier, not sleeping near pets, controlling the room temperature, meditation and breathing exercises before sleeping, unplugging the electronic devices 30 minutes before sleeping, and changing the sleep position.

Query:Hi doctor,I am 21 years old now. I am suffering from asthma for more than 17 years. It was horrible until my 15 years of age. It was pretty bad. But the severity has reduced now. It usually occurs at night time. Sometimes it happens in the daytime too. Wheezing is present, and there is chest tightn… Read Full »

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How Is Asthma Diagnosed

Your health care provider may use many tools to diagnose asthma:

  • Medical history
  • Lung function tests, including spirometry, to test how well your lungs work
  • Tests to measure how your airways react to specific exposures. During this test, you inhale different concentrations of allergens or medicines that may tighten the muscles in your airways. Spirometry is done before and after the test.
  • Peak expiratory flow tests to measure how fast you can blow air out using maximum effort
  • Fractional exhaled nitric oxide tests to measure levels of nitric oxide in your breath when you breathe out. High levels of nitric oxide may mean that your lungs are inflamed.
  • Allergy skin or blood tests, if you have a history of allergies. These tests check which allergens cause a reaction from your immune system.

How Do I Know If My Asthma Is Severe

Why does my asthma get worse in the spring and fall?

Asthma Severity should be determined by a physician, but there are several home and office measures that can serve as useful indicators of asthma severity, as well as predict future asthma attacks. A physician can take a formal patient history and perform a physical examination, but home and office measures can serve as useful adjuncts to the physicians examination..

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Youre Using Your Inhaler More Than Usual

If youve been having to use your quick-relief inhaler more often than usual, or youve started to feel like it doesnt help as much when you do use it, your severe asthma may be getting worse.

It can be hard sometimes to keep track of exactly how many times you use your inhaler during a given week. If you suspect your usage is increasing, you may want to start keeping track in a journal or in a note-taking app on your phone.

Keeping a log of your inhaler usage can also help to identify what may be triggering your severe asthma symptoms. For example, if you mainly use your inhaler after being outdoors, an environmental trigger like pollen may be causing your asthma to flare up.

What To Expect When You Visit The Doctor

Your doctor may ask whether you have any family history of asthma, eczema or hay fever.

In children, doctors assess the severity of the asthma based on the pattern and frequency of the symptoms.

Lung function tests are difficult to perform in children younger than 5 years and so are usually only used to diagnose and assess severity in children 5 years and older.

It is recommended that a paediatrician or paediatric respiratory specialist diagnose and manage asthma in infants under 12 months. If your infant is wheezing your doctor should refer to you one of these specialists.

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Contact Doctor During Office Hours

  • Don’t have written asthma action plan from your doctor
  • Use an inhaler, but don’t have a spacer
  • Miss more than 1 day of school per month for asthma
  • Asthma limits exercise or sports
  • Asthma attacks wake child up from sleep
  • Use more than 1 inhaler per month
  • No asthma check-up in more than 1 year
  • You have other questions or concerns

The Importance Of Medication Adherence

Asthma Getting Worse After Quitting Smoking

One of the most important things to prevent asthma attacks is medication adherence, said Carrillo. Often, people find their medication reduces the occurrence of their symptoms, so they think they do not need their medication anymore. This is not true, because asthma has no curethe prescribed medication only controls your asthma symptoms.

Health care providers usually prescribe two key medications: a long-term control inhaler and a rescue inhaler. Since asthma triggers are highly specific to the individual, people should speak with their health care provider to find an asthma care plan that works for them. Many health care providers prescribe both types of inhalers.

The first medication is a long-term asthma control inhaler like a corticosteroid. People with asthma should regularly take this medication to control their chronic symptoms and prevent asthma attacks. If people stop their medication, then their risk of an asthma attacks increases.

The second medication is a rescue inhaler. This inhaler will provide a quick relief of symptoms during an asthma attack. The medication relaxes the airway muscles, which opens the lungs and allows unconstructed airflow.

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When To Seek Medical Care

If you notice that your symptoms are worsening, then you should seek out medical care in order to formulate a new treatment plan that will work for you. Another occasion when you should seek medical care is if you feel the need to use your reliever inhaler multiple times a week. Medical care should be sought out even if you find that your mental health is being affected due to the strain of asthma. It is important to be in frequent contact with your healthcare provider and to track both your symptoms and triggers as well as your medication intake.

About Secondhand Smoke And Asthma

Secondhand smoke is the smoke from a cigarette, cigar, or pipe, that is exhaled by a smoker. Secondhand smoke contains more than 4,000 substances, including several compounds that cause cancer.

Secondhand smoke can trigger asthma episodes and increase the severity of attacks. Secondhand smoke is also a risk factor for new cases of asthma in pre-school-aged children. Children’s developing bodies may make them more susceptible to the effects of secondhand smoke. Due to their small size, they breathe more rapidly than adults, thereby taking in more secondhand smoke. Children receiving high doses of secondhand smoke, such as those with smoking parents, run the greatest relative risk of experiencing damaging health effects.

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What To Do About It

At the time, Dr. Wenzels only suggestion was that I consider asking my doctor about using oral contraceptives. This would cut back on hormonal swings before my period and would also enable me to bump up my treatment prior to my pill break to avoid any symptoms. Oral contraceptives, along with the patch and the ring, prevent pregnancy by decreasing spikes in hormones at certain points in the menstrual cycle. So it seems regulation of the hormonal cycle may benefit certain women with asthma.

While this may be a good option for some women, the use of hormonal contraceptives can actually make symptoms worse for other women. A 2015 study suggested this was especially true in women who are

Additional Treatment For Asthma And What To Expect

Asthma Australia – How cold dry air affects your asthma

If your asthma has been getting worse, you may need to speak with a doctor and consider additional treatment options to help get your symptoms under control. Luckily, most individuals experience relief from their more severe symptoms after a few days of receiving proper treatment.

Treatments for asthma when your symptoms progressively get worse include:

  • Bronchodilators: This medication helps relax the muscles surrounding the airway, allowing for increased airflow.
  • Anti-inflammatory medicines: These medications aid in reducing inflammation and expelling mucus from the airways, which can make breathing much easier when experiencing a flare-up.
  • Breathing treatments/inhalers: If your symptoms persist, you may have to start undergoing breathing treatments. Additionally, if you do not already use an inhaler, your doctor may recommend adopting one into your daily routines to help manage symptoms.

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What Causes Adults To Develop Asthma

At least 30% of adult asthma cases are triggered by allergies. People who are allergic to cats may have an increased risk for developing adult onset asthma. Exposure to allergens or irritants such as cigarette smoke, chemicals, mold, dust, or other substances commonly found in the persons environment might trigger the first asthma symptoms in an adult.

Prolonged exposure to certain workplace materials may set off asthma symptoms in adults.

Hormonal fluctuations in women may play a role in adult onset asthma. Some women first develop asthma symptoms during or after a pregnancy. Women going through menopause can develop asthma symptoms for the first time.

Different illnesses, viruses, or infections can be a factor in adult onset asthma. A bad cold or a bout with the flu is often a factor in adult onset asthma.

Smoking does not cause adult onset asthma however, if you smoke or if you are exposed to cigarette smoke , it may provoke asthma symptoms.

What Are Signs And Symptoms Of Adult Onset Asthma

Regardless of age, asthma symptoms can include:

Dry cough, especially at night or in response to specific triggers

Tightness or pressure in the chest

Wheezing a whistling sound when exhaling

Shortness of breath after exercise or physical exertion

Difficulty breathing

Colds that go to the chest or hang on for 10 days or more

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Are There Any Special Considerations For Adults Who Develop Asthma

People with multiple medical conditions need to be aware of how their illnesses and the medications they use may affect one another.

If you take more than one medication, talk with your physician about ways to simplify your medication program. Explore the possibility of combining medications or using alternate ones that will have the same desired effect. Be sure to discuss potential drug interactions with anything you take including vitamins or herbal supplements.

Side Effects Of Asthma Medication

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If you are worried about possible side effects from asthma medication, speak to your doctor. Do not stop or reduce doses of medication for your child without speaking with your doctor. Common side effects from inhaled asthma medication:

Preventers

  • sore mouth and throat
  • fungal throat infections.

Using a spacer reduces the risk of these side effects. as does rinsing the mouth with water after using an inhaler.

Relievers

  • fast heart beat.

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What You Need To Know About Your Childs Asthma

There are many things to think about and plan for when your child has asthma. It is important to learn as much as you can about the condition. Your doctor and pharmacist are there to help you. Talk to them about any concerns you may have about your childs asthma. To manage your childs asthma effectively, it is important to know:

  • the pattern of their asthma
  • their asthma medications what they do and how to help your child take them properly
  • what to do if they have an asthma attack know and follow asthma first aid.

Make sure you have an updated written asthma action plan and understand how to use it.

Dont Forget Your Asthma Inhalers

Your asthma action plan also identifies other ways to keepyour asthma in line, like using a rescueinhaler to provide short-term symptom relief and a maintenance inhaler that deliversmedicine every day for long-term asthma control.

If your asthma is severe enough to require daily medications, dont think Im fine, I dont need my inhaler today, says Dr. Latifi. Thats a mistake. Daily controllers like steroid inhalers prevent flare-ups from occurring. They keep airway inflammation the cause of asthma under control.

Once you experience symptoms, your asthma has alreadystarted to spiral out of control. Even at this point, many people push offtreatment. They may try to ride out the symptoms for a few days and see if thesituation improves.

But dont wait, Dr. Latifi urges: If you feel symptoms, useyour rescue inhaler and contact your provider who may suggest you come in for atreatment. Asthma is life-threatening, so waiting even a few days can land youin the emergency room or a hospital bed.

He offers two additional tips for asthma medicines:

  • Use a spacer:A spacer disperses the drug more efficiently so the lungs can quickly put it touse. It also results in less of the medicine sticking to your mouth and throat.
  • Rinseyour mouth: Rinsing may help you avoid thrush, a white film in the back ofyour mouth and throat. Steroid inhalers can lead to thrush because the steroidmesses with the bacterial balance of your palate.

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Everyday Treatment For Asthma In Children

The main aims of day-to-day asthma treatment are to:

  • keep symptoms under control
  • keep lungs as healthy as possible
  • stop asthma from interfering with school or play
  • help your child enjoy a full and active life.

Your doctor will help you to develop a plan to manage your childs asthma which will include an asthma action plan , and will prescribe the correct medication to help you do so.

Ragweed Pollen Is Being Spread

Why Certain People Get Asthma

Just like spring, autumn is an allergy season. In the case of the fall months, ragweed pollen is the main culprit. Ragweed is distributed widely in the United States and is responsible for giving even people without asthma severe allergic reactions. If you suffer from asthma, ragweed pollen can irritate your respiratory system and make your symptoms worse. Some people even suffer from both asthma and ragweed allergies.

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