Everything you need to know about asthma
Asthma is an inflammatory disease that causes narrowing of the bronchi, i.e. the airways, and causes severe symptoms, most commonly coughing, difficulty breathing and wheezing (wheezing).
In Greece, according to data from the Hellenic Pulmonary Society, it is estimated that 8.5-10% of the population suffers from asthma.
The causes that trigger the inflammatory reaction of asthma can be allergic or non-allergic. In the first case, they are found in the environment and are products of plants, trees, dust, and others that are called allergens.
We can easily understand this as usually the difficulty in breathing and coughing comes after a runny nose and eyes with intense sneezing.
The solution for allergic asthma, in addition to drug treatment, is to avoid allergens. To avoid them we must know them, which is possible, as they are now detected with skin tests and a simple blood test.
Allergic asthma usually presents from a young age with milder symptoms, while in late childhood to early adulthood (6-17 years) it may not present any symptoms at all and return later.
In the case of non-allergic asthma, the symptoms may be more severe and more often require medication, while it presents at older ages, mainly in women with obesity and hormonal disorders without involvement of the nose or eyes.
Finally, many diseases can cause symptoms that resemble asthma, such as heart disease, obstructive pulmonary disease, stomach diseases such as gastroesophageal reflux disease, and upper respiratory diseases such as rhinitis.
In addition to avoiding the triggering allergen in the case of allergies, medication consists of sprays, which essentially put asthma in a dormant state. The better we comply with the treatment, the longer the disease remains dormant. This does not mean that it will not be activated again. For this reason, the patient must be trained to recognize early symptoms and seek advice from their pulmonologist.
Medication is accompanied by smoking cessation, maintaining a normal weight, exercise, and treating gastroesophageal reflux disease and rhinitis.
