5 Things You Need to Know About Bronchial Asthma Symptoms

1. What's the Difference?

Bronchial asthma is the correct name for the common form of asthma. It's a chronic inflammatory disease that affects your airways and causes periodic coughing attacks, shortness of breath, wheezing and a feeling of tightness in your chest. More than 22 million people in the US suffer from asthma. Children are very susceptible to it, with 6.5 million kids under 18 dealing with it. At first, people can be completely free of symptoms between asthma attacks, for long periods of time. As asthma worsens over time, though, more and more mucus is secreted between attacks, too. It builds up in your airways and can cause bacterial infections.

2. Triggers

You usually can't identify a cause for bronchial asthma but occasionally it's triggered by an allergy to dander, mold or dust. Most people with asthma do have some sort of allergy, but your allergy is not necessarily causing the asthma. It's quite a catch-22. When you have bronchial asthma, it can come on pretty fast out of nowhere or it can be triggered by things like exercise, respiratory infections, tobacco smoke, exercise, weather, singing, laughing or crying, pollutants, anxiety or stress or food allergies.

3. Body Changes

Triggers can tighten the muscles of your bronchial tree. Your air passages swell, cutting off the oxygen and causing you to wheeze. Wheezing is the main sign and symptom of an impending asthma attack. So is shortness of breath, excessive coughing or a cough that hangs on and keeps you awake through the night.

4. Is It Over yet?

Asthma attacks can carry on for anywhere from a few minutes to days. If your airflow becomes severely restricted, asthma attacks can become very dangerous. You can develop asthma at any age, but some kids will eventually outgrow it. You can find out more about your illness by looking at family history of asthma. You're more at risk of developing asthma if you or someone else in your family has allergies, eczema or asthma.

5. Treating Bronchial Asthma

Once your asthma doctor diagnoses you with bronchial asthma, he'll put you on medication, which includes pills and inhalers. He'll also want you to make some changes to your lifestyle to help prevent future asthma attacks. Asthma inhalers will help treat the inflammation that occurs in your airways. By sucking on the inhaler, you're taking in a low dose of steroids. The steroids reduce swelling. There are also inhalers nicknamed "rescue" bronchodilator inhalers, which immediately start working during an asthma attack to open your airways and help you breathe. Make sure to have your doctor show you how to use the inhaler when you're first diagnosed. Carry a rescue inhaler with you in case of a severe asthma attack. It could save your life. There is no cure for bronchial asthma, but medicine will help limit symptoms and allow you to participate in normal activities.