Cardiac asthma is a clinical condition caused by congestive heart failure and pulmonary edema, the accumulation of fluids in the lungs. It is characterized by an asthmatic-type wheezing due to the reduced efficiency of the heart at pumping blood and the sudden blockage of the pulmonary circulation. Treatment options for cardiac asthma are mainly focused at increasing the cardiac output of blood to peripheral tissues and controlling pulmonary edema.
Diuretics
Diuretics are a type of medication that induce the excretion of more water and sodium by the kidneys. Since the wheezing associated with cardiac asthma is due to the accumulation of fluid in the lungs, treatment options involving diuretics are effective in expelling excess fluid from the lung and reducing the symptoms of cardiac asthma.
Bronchodilators
Bronchodilators are a type of asthma medication used to open the airways of the lungs, thus allowing more air to flow through them. A treatment combination of bronchodilators and supplementary oxygen as well as drugs targeting the underlying cause of congestive heart failure is effective in patients suffering from cardiac asthma. Drugs such as digoxin are effective at improving the heart muscle and its ability to pump blood and expel excess fluid from the lungs.
Corticosteriods
Corticosteroids are steroid hormones constrict blood vessels and inhibit the release of inflammatory proteins called cytokines. Oral or inhaled corticosteroids are prescribed to patients with acute cardiac asthma and pulmonary edema who are unresponsive to other treatment options such as diuretics and bronchodilators.
