Nov2013_GET TO KNOW YOUR HEALTH

Asthma:

A guy walks up to a girl and says, “This could just be my asthma, but I think you just stole my breath away.”  Luckily, I didn’t try that line on Yolanta, otherwise the last eight years may have turned out very different.  That amazingly corny example of a pickup line brings us to our next topic, Asthma.

Asthma is a chronic disease that involves inflammation of the airways and can vary from insignificant to fatal.  The cause of the disease is not fully understood, but there is often a family history of allergic conditions including asthma, eczema or hayfever.  Asthma is more prevalent in developed countries and can begin at any age and its severity can vary over time.   

Asthma affects approximately 2 million Australians, that’s 10% of the population!  The incidence of the disease is higher in children and the elderly with asthma being the leading cause of hospitalisation of children in Australia.  When most people think of asthma they think of the mild, after exercise, can’t catch their breath kind.  However, as stated, it can be serious and life threatening with around 400 people dying per year from asthma is Australia.  Luckily in almost all cases, the condition can be very effectively managed.

 

People with asthma have airways that are more sensitive than they should be.  When exposed to certain triggers, asthmatics airways will respond by becoming narrower, which will make it harder to breathe.  There are three main factors in this response that cause the airway to become narrower:

– The inside lining of the airway becomes red and swollen (inflammation)

– Extra mucus (sticky fluid) may be produced

– The muscle around the airway tightens, making the airway smaller (bronchoconstriction)

 

When this reaction happens, it causes several symptoms.  The most common symptoms include shortness of breath, a wheeze while breathing, a feeling of tightness in the chest and a dry, irritating cough.  This last symptom is the most commonly overlooked, as it can just seem like an ordinary dry cough.  The asthma cough will most commonly be worst at night or early morning and can worsen after exercise or activity.  If concerned about any of these type of symptoms, the doctor can easily test for asthma with a simple exhaling test that only takes a few seconds.  There are a few things that can precipitate an asthma attack and hence can try to be avoided.  The most common of these include respiratory infections (e.g. colds and flus), cigarette smoke, allergy triggers (e.g. pollens and pets), weather (e.g. cold air or thunderstorms) and even stress.  So next time you get in trouble for not doing the gardening/walking the dog/vacuuming the house, just say “Sorry hun, I would have, but my asthma is playing up….” Just letting you know, this only gets you in more trouble if you don’t actually have asthma, trust me I know.

Asthma can be managed very effectively in most people with medication and something called an asthma action plan.  An asthma attack works in the same way as the snowball effect, the longer the snowball rolls down the hill, the bigger it will get.  An asthma attack will cause an inflammatory cascade which will often worsen if left untreated.  The earlier it is effectively treated, the smaller the reaction (“snowball”) will be and hence it can be treated with simpler and safer medicines.  

 

These medications fall into two categories, relievers and preventers.  A reliever is the medication that someone takes when they are having an acute attack.  The medication works to reverse the bronchospasm (constriction of the airway) and allow more air into the lungs.  A reliever will work in about 1 minute, and provides very effective relief in most cases however this also leads asthma suffers to use it incorrectly.  Once an asthmatic is using an inhaler more than 3 times per week they should see their doctor for a review of the condition as they could benefit from preventative therapy.  This preventative therapy needs to be taken every day and it works on the inflammation and over-reaction in the lungs, which helps to stop the reaction from ever occurring (the snowflake never falls in the first place).  It’s this preventative therapy that is most often neglected or forgotten however it is also the most important part of the asthma plan.

As always, if you have any questions or want more advice, don’t hesitate to drop into the pharmacy or see another local health care professional.

 

Written by Andrew Harvey

(Your local pharmacist) 

Dayboro Pharmacy 

Phone 3425 1435

Mon – Fri 8.30am – 5.30pm

Sat 8.30am – 12.30pm