Asthma symptoms, triggers, diagnosis and treatment
What is asthma?
Asthma is a disease that makes it hard to breathe. People with asthma may cough or make a whistling or wheezing sound when they breathe, but not everyone has the same symptoms.
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Asthma affects your airways (the tubes that carry air into your lungs). Asthma causes the airways to become narrow or blocked when you have an attack (or "exacerbation").
1 If you have asthma, things like smoke, pollen, and exercise are
asthma triggers that can lead to an attack.
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People with asthma have airways that are more sensitive to triggers. That's because the airways are always irritated (inflamed). Asthma triggers cause the muscles around the inflamed airways to tighten. The airways become narrow, and it can be very hard to breathe.
Asthma medicines like ProAir
® HFA work by relaxing the muscles around the airways.
What are the symptoms of asthma?
Not everyone with asthma has the same symptoms. In fact, many people who have asthma don't even know it. Some common symptoms of asthma include:
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- A whistling or wheezing sound when you breathe
- Coughing
- Shortness of breath
- Chest tightness or pain
- Frequent chest colds
If you have some of these symptoms, you might have asthma. Only a healthcare provider can diagnose asthma, but we've developed an
asthma symptoms checklist to help you talk about your symptoms with him or her.
Diagnosing asthma
When you see your healthcare provider about your asthma symptoms, you'll be asked a lot of questions about your health. You'll probably have a physical exam of your nose, throat, lungs, chest, and skin. You may also have a breathing test called "spirometry."
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You may even be given a
quick-relief asthma medicine like ProAir
® HFA to see if it helps your breathing.
1 Your healthcare provider will give you a diagnosis based on your answers to the questions and the results of any tests you take.
Next: Check your symptoms with our asthma symptoms checklist >>
Reference
- NHLBI Expert Panel Report 3 (EPR3): Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma. Available at: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/asthma/asthgdln.htm. Accessed April 20, 2010.
ProAir
® HFA (albuterol sulfate) Inhalation Aerosol is indicated in patients 4 years of age and older for the treatment or prevention of bronchospasm with reversible obstructive airway disease and for the prevention of exercise-induced bronchospasm.
Important Safety Information
If your symptoms become significantly worse when you use ProAir
® HFA, contact your doctor immediately. This may indicate either a worsening of your asthma or a reaction to the medication, which may rarely occur with the first use of a new canister of ProAir
® HFA. Either of these could be life-threatening.
What to tell your doctor before using ProAir
® HFA: If you have a heart, blood, or seizure disorder, high blood pressure, diabetes, or an overactive thyroid, be sure to tell your doctor. Also make sure your doctor knows all the medications you are taking – especially heart medications and drugs that treat depression – because some medications may interfere with how well your asthma medications work. Do not exceed the recommended dose.
Side effects associated with ProAir
® HFA included headache, rapid heart beat, pain, dizziness, and irritation of the throat and nose.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit
www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088.