Asthma
Asthma is a lung disease that can be treated. It is a chronic inflammatory disease of the respiratory system that results in relapsing symptoms. In simpler terms, asthma is the narrowing of the airways in the lungs that causes wheezing, coughing, and gasping for breath. It is a very unpredictable disease and can differ greatly from one person to the next. Some people have very mild symptoms every once and a while where as for others it is a daily struggle to breath. Asthma can occur at any age but most commonly begins with in the first five years of life. Approximately 7% of Americans suffer from asthma, which is roughly 18 million people, 4.8 million of which are children. Asthma is the leading cause for hospitalization among children and is the most common long-term childhood disease. “African-Americans are four times as likely as whites to be hospitalized and three times as likely to die from asthma (5).” This is partially because asthma is more sever in urban inner cities. Although many cases of asthma have been identified in the United States, many cases are likely to go undiagnosed. There are eight main signs or symptoms that help identify asthma trouble. The four most common are recurrent wheezin
“Asthma is classified into a number of categories based on severity of symptoms: intermittent, mild persistent, moderate persistent, and severe persistent (4).” These classifications help doctors determine which treatments to prescribe. Patients with intermittent or situational asthma only have symptoms present when they are exposed to certain triggers. You can avoid an asthma attack by simply avoiding those triggers that cause your symptoms. People with intermittent asthma usually do not need long-term medication. Patients with mild persistent asthma have symptoms more than twice a week but less than every day of the week. If you have this type of asthma, you need long-term preventive medication. The third type of asthma is moderate persistent asthma. Patients who suffer from moderate persistent asthma have daily symptoms and need long-term preventive medication. However, they will need to use it more frequently than someone with mild persistent asthma. The final type of asthma is the hardest to control. It is severe persistent asthma. Symptoms occur on a continual basis and require the use of long-term controller medications multiple times a day. Unlike the majority of asthmatics in America, I did not develop asthma with in the first five years of life. I was diagnosed with asthma just two years ago at the age of 18. I have had to make numerous adjustments to the way I live my life. I did gymnastics for 14 years and exercised on a daily basis. However, due to my asthma I can no longer partake in strenuous activity. I am able to exercise daily just not at high intensity levels. I know my limits and how far I can push them. My asthma gets worse during the spring and summer months. I have very bad allergies and when the pollen begins to fall my asthma kicks in full swing. During the summer I use my anti-inflammatory inhalers twice a day at scheduled times. These help to prevent and control my asthma. I also have a fast acting inhaler (a reliever) that I use when I begin to develop symptoms of an attack. I am allergic to cats so when I get around one I will begin to develop symptoms of an attack. I do my best ! Asthma attacks are caused by something that bothers the lungs. These are most often called “triggers.” There are two main types of triggers, allergic and non-allergic. Allergic triggers, also known as allergens, are substances that cause no problems in some people but in others, stimulate an allergic reaction causing an asthma attack. Exam
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Approximate Word count = 1690
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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