Asthma

Asthma is a disease where the airways of a patient become inflammed (by an immune respose to a non-toxic stimulus) and thus causes obstruction in the airways. Asthma can be triggered by a variety of factors, commonly an enviromental stimulus such as smoke inhallation, cold air and traffic fumes. Asthma attacks are a widely known symptom of the disease where the patient has a rapid swelling of the lungs causing wheezing, difficulty breathing and a sense of panic in the patient.

Prevention

Asthma is easily treated using an inhalor. An inhalor is a small device which the patient places in the mouth, pushed to release the contents and the patient inhales in the drug.

Commonly salbutamol and ipatropium are found in inhalors, which are used as a fast acting solution to stop asthma attacks when they happen.

We also prescribe drugs called preventers to stop asthma occurring in the first place, commonly found preventors are glucocorticoids however these may cause Cushing's syndrome.

What do I do if someone has an asthma attack?

According to www.emedicinehealth.com [1] approximately 5000 people die in the United States each year from asthma and is one of the most common reasons why people visit A&E and call ambulances. So if somone has an asthma attack it may be life threatening if the situation isnt handled properly and quickly.

As we have developed preventor drugs which drop the rate of asthma attacks to such a low level people often forget to take their inhalors with them when they leave the house, or delay a visit to their GP to get a refill for their inhalor.

If you encounter somone who is having an asthma attack and doesn't have an inhalor, call 999, and explain the situation. Do not use someone elses inhalor, as the drugs contained may be different to what the patient commonly uses (and should the patient be allergic to that drug then the inflammatory response could get worse causing respiratory arrest). Try to calm the patient down and reassure them that they will be fine, but do not ask them to speak a large amount as it will cause more stress to their respiratory system. Wait with the patient until the ambulance arrives.