Asthma

What is Asthma?

Asthma is a chronic lung condition which causes occasional and often debilitating breathing difficulties. It tends to start in childhood but can affect individuals of all ages.

Asthma tends to be hereditary, particularly if there's a history of smoking and allergies. Adults can also suffer from Asthma and associated conditions such as COPD, especially if they smoke or are exposed to irritants.

According to the British Lung Foundation, around five million individuals in the UK are affected by asthma. While there's no cure for asthma, treatments can manage your symptoms so they don't negatively impact your life.

If you are not sure if you have asthma, it's important to speak to your GP. Your doctor may be able to diagnose you with asthma or refer you to a specialist who can diagnose you.

What is COPD?

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a progressive lung disease that causes your airways to become inflamed, restricting oxygen flow to the lungs.

When this occurs, the body tissues in the lungs receive less oxygen, making it more difficult to exhale carbon dioxide. If left untreated, you become short of breath, making it difficult to stay active.

Sometimes individuals will have symptoms of both emphysema and bronchitis; therefore, doctors like to refer to the condition as COPD. But, other doctors still believe a person can still have chronic bronchitis even if they don’t have airway obstruction, an important COPD characteristic. Your physician will give you details about your condition and how to treat it most effectively.

Many cases of COPD are preventable and treatable. Some medicines prescribed for asthma to reduce inflammation in the lung can also help those suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

What Causes Asthma?

It's unknown why certain individuals develop asthma, and others don't. However, it's likely due to genetics and environmental factors. Many believe our lifestyle choices can be a contributing factor to developing asthma.

These lifestyle choices include:

• Diet
• Housing
• Environment

Certain substances and irritants can trigger allergies which can trigger asthma symptoms.

Triggers of Asthma

Asthma triggers vary among people and may include:

• Respiratory infections like a cold
• Airborne substances like dust mites, pollen, pet dander or mould spores
• Cold air
• Cockroach waste
• Air irritants and pollutants like smoke
• Strong stress and emotions
• Certain medicines like aspirin, beta-blockers, naproxen (Aleve) and ibuprofen (Motrin IB and Advil)
• Preservatives and sulphites in certain foods and drinks like dried fruit, shrimp, beer and wine and processed potatoes
• Physical activity
• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)

Symptoms of Asthma

Asthma, as mentioned, inflames the airways, which can cause people to have long-lasting inflammation requiring constant management, usually with lifestyle choices and medications. An asthma attack can occur at any moment. When you have mild symptoms, they will likely only last for several minutes; if your asthma symptoms are more severe, they can last for hours or even days.

Common asthma symptoms include:

• Wheezing
• Coughing
• Chest tightness
• Rapid breathing
• Shortness of breath

Many things trigger these symptoms. However, chances are its asthma if they:

• Get worse in the morning and at night
• Happen frequently and continue coming back
• Occur after exercise or due to an allergen like animal fur or pollen

If you suspect you have asthma (or your child), or if you do have it and it’s difficult to control, see your doctor.

What is an Asthma Attack?

An asthma attack is when your symptoms suddenly worsen. You may feel a tightening around your chest due to your swollen airways, making breathing difficult. In more serious cases, you may experience dizziness, confusion, and your fingers and lips may turn blue.

Asthma attacks can occur due to stress, anxiety or exposure to irritants and smoke.

It is important to understand how to manage these symptoms. Reliever inhalers such as Salbutamol are effective remedies in treating acute asthma attacks. Usually, one or two puffs, inhaled immediately upon attack, can provide relief of symptoms.

How to Manage Asthma

Managing your asthma can reduce the risk of having asthma attacks and improve your quality of life. Avoiding known irritants like aerosols and dust, wearing a scarf over your nose and mouth in cold weather, and staying vaccinated against influenza and pneumonia during the winter can drastically reduce your chances of having an asthma attack.

Asthma medication such as inhalers, nebulisers and pills can also offer both short-term and long-term relief and protect your lungs from damage from frequent asthma attacks.

Treating Asthma

Inhalers are common treatments for asthma. These are a device which administers the medicine by breathing it in.

Asthma inhalers can deliver a dry powder or an aerosol spray, which requires different techniques to take them. Your doctor will show you the correct technique to take your inhaler.

Inhalers are grouped by action and colour coded to denote their mechanism.

Blue inhalers

Short-acting beta-2 agonists (SABAs) - also known as "reliever" or "rescue" inhalers - are typically coloured blue.

These inhalers are used to quickly relieve asthma symptoms when they arise.

Blue reliever inhalers include:

• Ventolin
• Salamol
• Airomir
• Bricanyl

Brown inhalers

Brown inhalers are usually long-acting corticosteroid inhalers and are taken to prevent asthma symptoms from developing.

These include:

• Clenil modulite
• Pulmicort Turbohaler
• Qvar

Purple inhalers

Inhalers which contain both a corticosteroid and a long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMAs) are typically purple or lilac.

Examples of these include:

• Symbicort Turbohaler
• Seretide

Pink inhalers

Pink inhalers are similar to purple inhalers in that they combine two classes of medicines.

These inhalers contain both a corticosteroid and a long-acting beta2 antagonist (LABAs) and are used as preventer inhalers.

Fostair belongs to this group of inhalers.

What are the benefits of treating asthma?

When you manage your asthma well, you should be free of your symptoms. Although it may be harder to control severe asthma, the aim of treatment for most asthma patients is to manage the condition so that:

• Your asthma doesn't wake you up at night.
• You don't get symptoms during the day.
• You don't suffer with any asthma attacks.
• You don't require an inhaler.
• Your asthma doesn't interfere with your daily life.

When you manage your asthma well, you won't need your inhaler as much. Your doctor will also be able to prescribe you the lowest dose of medication to keep your symptoms under control.

You'll even save money if you're not paying for a lot of prescriptions to keep your asthma under control.

Your asthma doesn't just affect your physical health. It also can hugely affect your whole life and those around you. Therefore, other benefits of managing your condition are:

• You can exercise, travel and do other things without being worried your asthma symptoms will interfere
• The people you love will worry less about you
• You won't miss out on being able to play with your kids or other aspects of family life
• You won't require as much time off of work because of your symptoms

If your asthma is under control, your doctor could prescribe less medication to treat your symptoms. This improves your quality of life, allowing you to be more active without worrying that your asthma will interfere, but it can also save you money as you will not be paying for lots of prescriptions to treat your symptoms.

How Can Prescription Treatment Help Me?

Asthma medicine plays an important role in how effectively you manage your condition. It prevents asthma attacks. It helps reduce the inflammation of your airways, making them less likely to have a reaction to triggers. With the proper medicine, you can live a normal and active life.

Frequently Asked Questions about Asthma and Asthma Treatments

1. How do you treat asthma?

Once you receive your initial diagnosis, your doctor will prescribe treatment depending on the severity of your symptoms and how long you've had them.

2. Are there any side effects of asthma medications?

There is always a risk of side effects from any medication, including asthma medications. However, most individuals don't experience any side effects or very few. Your doctor will only prescribe you medication if they believe the benefits outweigh the risks.

3. Do asthma attacks cause damage to the lungs?

If your asthma attacks are frequent, it could lead to your airways becoming narrower and scarred. Doctors refer to this as "airway remodelling". To prevent this type of lung damage, quit smoking and take all medications, including inhalers as prescribed.

4. If I'm pregnant with asthma, can my baby get asthma too?

The exact cause of asthma is not known. However, the condition is often genetic. Your baby has a higher chance of developing breathing problems or asthma if:

• You either smoked while pregnant or smoked around the baby
• Both your partner and you have asthma
• If there's only one parent with asthma, the baby is at higher risk if the mother has asthma.

5. Can an asthma attack kill you?

Asthma UK reports that one person has a life-threatening asthma attack every 10 seconds. While most asthma attack sufferers seek help and get better, these attacks kill three people daily in the UK.

Cautions and Exclusions

If you're intolerant or allergic to Salamol, Atrovent, Ventolin or Clenil Modulite or any of the ingredients in them, you shouldn't use any of them. Always inform your prescriber about all medications you're on and previous medications. Also, inform them about any medical conditions you have as well.

Authored & Reviewed By

Mohamed Imran Lakhi

MPharm - Lead Pharmacist

This content has been written and checked for quality and accuracy by Imran Lakhi is the superintendent pharmacist and founder at Prescription Doctor. He has been at the core of our team.

Published on: 15/03/2018 Reviewed on: 18/05/2023