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Thursday 6 March 2014

IS ASTHMA TREATED AND CONTROLLED

Asthma is a long-term disease that cant be cured. The goal of asthma treatment is to control the disease. Good asthma control will:

Prevent chronic and troublesome symptoms such as coughing and shortness of breath.
Reduce your need of quick-relief medicines.
Help you maintain good lung function.
Let you maintain your normal activity levels and sleep through the night.
Prevent asthma attacks that could result in your going to the emergency room or being admitted to the hospital for treatment.
Asthma treatment for certain groups of people, such as children, pregnant women, or those for whom exercise brings on asthma symptoms, will need to be adjusted to meet their special needs.



FOLLOW AN ASTHMA ACTION PLAN


You can work with your doctor to create a personal written asthma action plan. The asthma action plan shows your daily treatment, such as what kind of medicines to take and when to take them.
If your child has asthma, all of the people who care for him or her should know about the childs asthma action plan. This includes baby-sitters and workers at daycare centres, schools, and camps. These caretakers can help your child follow his or her action plan. Avoid Things That Can Worsen Your Asthma A number of common things (sometimes called asthma triggers) can set off or worsen your asthma symptoms. Once you know what these factors are, you can take steps to control many of them. For example, if exposure to pollens or air pollution makes your asthma worse, try to limit time
outdoors when the levels of these substances are high in the outdoor air.
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If your asthma symptoms are clearly linked to allergies, and you cant avoid exposure to those allergens, then your doctor may advise you to get allergy shots for the specific allergens that bother your asthma. You may need to see a specialist if you are thinking about getting allergy shots. These shots may lessen or prevent your asthma symptoms, but they cant cure your asthma.

Several health conditions can make asthma more difficult to manage. These conditions include runny nose, sinus infections, reflux disease, psychological stress, and sleep ipnea. Your doctor will treat these conditions as well. Medicines Your doctor will consider many things when deciding which asthma medicines are best for you. Doctors usually use a stepwise approach to prescribing medicines. Your doctor will check to see how well a medicine works for you; he or she will make changes in the dose or medicine, as needed.

Asthma medicines can be taken in pill form, but most .ire taken using a device called an inhaler. An inhaler allows Hie medicine to go right to your lungs. Not all inhalers are used the same way. Ask your doctor ,111c! other clinicians on your health care team to show you the right way to use your inhaler. Ask them to review the way you use your inhaler at every visit.

Long-Term Control Medicines

Most people who have asthma need to take long-term control medicines daily to help prevent symptoms. The most effective long-term medicines reduce airway inflammation.
Inhaled corticosteroids. Inhaled corticosteroids are the I inferred medicines for long-term control of asthma. These medicines are the most effective long-term control medicine ID relieve airway inflammation and swelling that makes the airways sensitive to certain substances that are breathed in.

Reducing inflammation helps prevent the chain reaction I hat causes asthma symptoms. Most people who take these medicines daily find they greatly reduce how severe Symptoms are and how often they occur. Inhaled corticosteroids are generally safe when taken as 111 described. They are very different from the illegal anabolic athletes. Inhaled corticosteroids arent habit-forming, even if you take them every day for many years. But, like many other medicines, inhaled corticosteroids can have side effects. Most doctors agree that the benefits of taking inhaled corticosteroids and preventing asthma attacks far outweigh the risks of side effects.

One common side effect from inhaled corticosteroids is a mouth infection called thrush. You can use a spacer or holding chamber to avoid thrush. A spacer or holding chamber is attached to your inhaler when taking medicine to keep the medicine from landing in your mouth or on the back of your throat. Other long-term control medicines. Other long-term control medicines include:

Inhaled long-acting beta2-agonists. These medicines open the airways and may be added to low-dose inhaled corticosteroids to improve asthma control. An inhaled long-acting beta2-agonist shouldnt be used alone.

Leukotriene modifiers. These medicines are taken by mouth. They help block the chain reaction that increases inflammation in your airways.

Cromolyn and nedocromil. These inhaled medicines also help prevent inflammation and can be used to treat asthma of mild severity.

TheophyUine. This medicine is taken by mouth and helps open the airways.
Long-term control medicines can have side effects. Talk to your doctor about these side effects and ways to monitor or avoid them.

Ouick-Relief Medicines

All people who have asthma need a quick-relief help relieve asthma symptoms that may flare up. short-acting beta2-agonists are the first choice for quick relief. These medicines act quickly to relax tight muscles around your airways when youre having a flare-up. This allows tin1 nlrways to open up so air can flow through them. Carry your quick-relief inhaler with you at all times In case you need it. If your child has asthma, make sure thai anyone caring for him or her and the childs school has th« t liilds quick-relief medicines. They should understand when nud how to use them and when to seek medical care for your child.

You shouldnt use quick-relief medicines in place of prescribed long-term control medicines. Quick-relief medicines dont reduce inflammation

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