Exposure to different gases air pollutants and substances at work is responsible for about one in seven of severe asthma attacks suffered by people of working age, according to a study just published. (more…)
Exercise-induced asthma is a feeling of shortness of breath, with the presence of cough, wheezing, and chest tightness after physical exercise.
Normally the bronchial tree and bronchial vessels responds to exercise with increasing radius of the interior of the bronchi (bronchodilation), (more…)
It is clear from the results of large epidemiologic studies that while atopy is a major risk factor for asthma, it is usually not sufficient by itself to drive the disease process to chronicity, as less than 25% of atopics develop persistent asthma. The situation in childhood is further complicated by an additional series of development factors, related to postnatal maturation of respiratory function. (more…)
Britain is one of the countries most affected by asthma: has 5.4 million people on asthma treatment, of which 1.1 million are children. Every day there three people die from asthma, but 90% of these deaths could be avoided. (more…)
It is widely knowt that pollen, pollution, smoke can trigger an asthma attack. But one interesting thing is exercise can also trigger asthma reactions.
Yes, because normally we breathe through the nose, where air is filtered, warmed and moistened. But when we exercise, especially if we are colds, sinusitis or allergic rhinitis have “breathe through the mouth and the air gets colder and drier the lungs and also unfiltered, so it can carry more allergens (more…)
The new research results have surprised the experts used to think that the relationship between sleep patterns and asthma were wheeze caused children to wake up. For the study, have been followed in Australia 2,400 children from birth to 14 years of age and their mothers completed questionnaires about allergy mother pregnancy, sleep patterns of children, family lifestyle, home environment and any other medical condition. (more…)
A history of cough, dyspnea, wheezing, chest tightness or performance problems during exercise suggests the person may have Exercise Induced Asthma symptoms.
Confirmation of the diagnosis usually requires an exercise test, which can be made:
* Under laboratory conditions, using treadmill or bicycle ergometer and heart and respiratory monitoring. The person should run in a sufficiently intense to increase in heart rate by 80% or less, for 4 to 6 minutes.
* The outdoor race, trying to reproduce the situation that causes the asthma symptoms. We evaluate the distance covered in 10-12 minutes and relevant incidents during this test.
In either case, are performed spirometry before and after exercise at intervals of 5 minutes for 20 to 30 minutes. A 15% decrease in FEV, is the criterion for diagnosing exercise-induced asthma (EIA).
The airway circulation has many potential roles in asthma. The vasculature has a major influence on upper airway patency in nasal infection and atopic responses. Given its responsiveness to provocative stimuli in asthma and vasoconstrictive and antiproliferative response to corticosteroids, the bronchial circulation is likely to be a future target for novel asthma therapies. (more…)
Local micro environmental factors are crucial in determining both susceptibility to vascular remodeling and the extent of angiogenesis. Major exogenous triggers of airway inflammation in asthma include viruses and inhaled aeroallergens, both of which are known to be associated with the production of angiogenic factors . These stimuli elicit reciprocal immune responses, through elaboration of Th1 and Th2 cytokines. (more…)
A preliminary study conducted in New Zealand shows that a natural chemical compound blackcurrants can help breathe allergic asthma sufferers. It was known that fruit consumption may reduce symptoms of allergic asthma, but this study is the first to demonstrate how this phenomenon occurs. (more…)