Asthma is a chronic long term lung disease that inflames and narrows the airways. Asthma causes periods of wheezing, chest tightness, shortness of breath and coughing. Coughing usually occurs at night or early morning, can occur during the day if allergies flares your asthma. The airways are Asthma is a disorder of the respiratory system in which the passages that enable air to pass into and out of the lungs periodically narrow, causing coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath. This narrowing is typically temporary and reversible, but in severe attacks, asthma may result in death Asthma Essay With Conclusions. Asthma is one of the major chronic respiratory conditions which alter the respiratory function of the body. The World Health Organisation or WHO () defines asthma as a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterised by frequent episodes of
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Asthma, a chronic disease process, affects approximately 18 million people in the United States. Asthma is a chronic condition marked by repeated episodes of airflow obstruction, bronchial hyperresponsiveness, and chronic inflammation of the airway. It affects approximately 18 million adults in the United States Durham, et al. Asthma is a disorder that affects the bronchioles in the lungs. When triggered by either allergic or nonallergic stimuli, an immune reaction occurs Alhassan, et al.
When an asthma exacerbation occurs, mast cells release histamine, leukotrienes, essay on asthma, interleukins, and prostaglandins, which cause mucus to be produced and spasms in the smooth muscles within the bronchiole walls. This action decreases the size of the bronchioles and, in turn, decreases inspiratory and expiratory air flow Keep, et al, essay on asthma. While airway obstruction is potentially reversible, failure to avoid asthmatic flares can lead to a decrease in overall respiratory function, increase the risk of death, and can essay on asthma chronic airway remodeling with only partially reversible airflow obstruction Durham, et al, essay on asthma.
Risk factors that can trigger an asthmatic response can both modifiable and nonmodifiable. Obesity, particularly childhood obesity, is a modifiable risk factor for adult asthma. Weight reduction is encouraged due to positive effect on lung function.
Another modifiable factor is occupational exposure. This can include jobs that involve animals, essay on asthma, plants, or insects or irritants such as gases, fumes, or dust Alhassan, et al.
additional modifiable factors include exercise, stress, smoke, medications and pets. There are also nonmodifiable factors that can trigger asthma. These can include a family history of atopic dermatitis, allergies, and asthma, which all can lead to an increased risk of developing asthma, especially if the family history includes a first-degree relative with a history of asthma.
Additional nonmodifiable triggers include a gastroesophageal reflux disease, nasal polyps, essay on asthma, rhinitis, and sinusitis Durham, et al. Asthmatic signs essay on asthma symptoms vary between individuals.
The general signs and symptoms include recurrent shortness of breath, wheezing, coughing, and chest tightness. These symptoms can respond to a bronchodilator Alhassan, et al. The most frequent finding is expiratory wheezing. Physical findings can include hyper expansion of the chest, use of accessory muscles, prolonged expirations, and retractions Durham, et al.
These signs are due to the excessive mucus production and the spasm of the smooth muscle of the bronchioles, which reduce the diameter of the airway Keep, et al.
Diagnosis is based on the symptoms and categorized into four categories: mild intermittent, mild persistent, moderate persistent, and severe persistent Henry, To determine the category, a thorough personal and family history as well as a physical examination, laboratory, and diagnostic testing can be performed Durham, et al. Laboratory testing can be performed related to a potential diagnosis of asthma.
Such laboratory studies can include arterial blood gases ABGs to determine the presence of hypoxemia, hypocarbia can occur in the early phase of an asthma attackessay on asthma, and hypercarbia can occur in the later phase of an asthma attack. In addition, sputum cultures can be performed to rule out bacterial causes for the symptoms Henry, essay on asthma, In addition to laboratory studies, a chest x-ray can also be performed, although not routinely performed in the diagnosis of asthma Durham, et al.
A chest x-ray may show hyperinflation or changes in chest structure over the long term Henry, There are various diagnostic testing that can be performed to assist in diagnosing asthma. Essay on asthma test is called spirometry. This test is the best diagnostic tool available to objectively assess obstruction of air flow and to evalute the bronchial response to treatment. Spirometry is strongly recommended to confirm an asthma diagnosis. There are two measurements that are needed: forced vital capacity FVCwhich is the maximum amount of air exhaled after a deep breath, and the forced expiratory volume in one second FEV1which is the amount of air expelled during the first second of expiration after FVC.
FEV1 is the essay on asthma standardized measurement to evalute for airflow limitation. Spirometry also assesses for reversibility of asthma. Spirometry is performed pre- and post-bronchodilator use to measure the amount of improvement after bronchodilator use, thereby proving reversibility of asthma, essay on asthma. Alhassan, et al.
Peak expiratory flow PEF can be measured during spirometry and can be helpful in essay on asthma asthma, although not nearly as reliable as spirometry. PEF is the greatest flow of air during forced exhalation. This can be measured easily with a small device the patient can keep essay on asthma them. Bronchial provocation, also known as bronchial challenge testing, is another useful tool, especially in patients with suspected asthma but a normal spirometry result.
This test can determine airway hyperresponsiveness AHR by measuring the amount of airway constriction that occurs when exposed to a trigger Alhassan, et al, essay on asthma. However, while a positive result can be indicative of asthma, it may also indicate other diagnoses such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease COPDessay on asthma, cystic fibrosis, or allergic rhinitis.
If the test is negative, it can rule out the essay on asthma of asthma Durham, et al. Other challenge tests include methacholine challenge testing MCT. This specific test is the most common provocative test to evaluate for hyperresponsiveness. MCT can only be performed in a laboratory setting using nebulized methacholine. As MCT has a high sensitivity for asthma but it can also show false positive results in the presence of COPD, cystic fibrosis, or allergic rhinitis Alhassan, et al.
Allergy testing, while not diagnostic of asthma, can identify sensitivities to triggers that may cause an asthma attack Durham, et al. Preventative treatment and education are a critical first step in management of asthma.
Patients should be made aware of ways to avoid known triggers, such as smoking cessation both the patient and essay on asthma familyavoiding pets, limiting carpeting in the home, and the use hypoallergenic pillows Durham, et al.
Avoiding and Controlling Your Asthma Triggers, a form created by the American Lung Association, can help patients identify triggers and offers advice to avoid or reduce triggers and covers topics such as smoking, pets, pollen, strong odors, dust, and even strong emotions, all of which can trigger an attack. Journaling is also a useful tool to teach asthma patients and one they can also share with their essay on asthma to track day-to-day triggers and symptoms Keep, et al.
Motivational interviewing MI has been found to be effective in patients to self-manage their asthma. This teaching method is a client-centered therapeutic method to explore and resolve resistance to change.
MI encourages patients to identify positive and negative results related to changing or not changing their behaviors, essay on asthma.
Identification of barriers and solutions enables patients to become independent in their management care and has been found to significantly improve medication compliance and make healthy lifestyle changes Keep, et al. In addition to patients knowing their triggers and how to avoid them, an Asthma Action Plan should be completed for every asthma patient and even comes as a small card that can be kept in a wallet.
The green zone indicates a patient has well-controlled asthma symptoms without coughing or wheezing and can complete all normal activities. The goal is essay on asthma stay in the green zone at all times, indicating good control over asthma. The yellow zone indicates difficulty carrying out normal activities due to coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, or chest tightness.
In the yellow zone, medication changes may be necessary, such has using a rescue medication. The yellow zone provides instructions on administering the rescue medication and next steps to take if the rescue medication is not effective. If medication changes in the yellow zone are not effective, it becomes the red zone, which is a medical emergency.
Instructions are provided in this action plan regarding medication, contacting the physician, and calling for emergency services. Additionally, if a peak flow meter is being used by the patient, the physician can set guidelines for the peak flow in each zone to further delineate control or action needed Keep, et al. While prevention methods, essay on asthma, such as avoiding the triggers of asthma, are helpful in managing asthma, essay on asthma, however, medications may also be necessary.
Asthma medications include two categories short-term symptom relief with rescue medications and long-term symptom relief with controllers. Often, a combination of the two are necessary for good essay on asthma Durham, et al. Short-term symptom relievers are used for acute asthma symptoms. These include short-acting beta2 agonists SABAsuch as albuterol, and short-acting muscarinic antagonists SAMA ipratropium.
These medications are bronchodilators, which reduce bronchoconstriction and allow for improved air flow. They have an onset of five minutes, peak in 30 to 60 minutes, and last for four to six hours Alhassan, et al. While they quickly act to reduce asthmatic symptoms and have minimal symptoms, adverse side effects such has tachycardia, dysrhythmia, or tremors can occur.
SAMA medications can be used in addition to SABA medications or as a replacement when SABA medications are not well-tolerated. In addition to SABA and SAMA use, systemic corticosteroid bursts can also be added to SABAs and SAMAs for short term relief depending on the severity of symptom exacerbation Durham, et al.
Long-term symptom relief can be obtained through long-acting beta2 agonists LABA medications meant to control inflammation related to chronic asthma and help prevent an asthma attack, essay on asthma. LABA medications promote a decrease in symptoms, decreased risk of exacerbations, decreased asthma-related hospitalizations, improved lung function, improved quality of life, and lower risk of asthma-related deaths Durham, et al. LABA medications typically last more than 12 hours and include medications such has salmeterol, formoterol, and vilanterol.
These medications have similar side effects as SABA medications. Although LABAs are strong bronchodilators, they must not be used as a single therapy. It is recommended that LABAs be used with inhaled corticosteroids ICS to decrease the risk of severe exacerbations and death Durham, et al. In addition to SABA and LABA medications, leukotriene receptor antagonists LTRAs such has montelukast and zafirlukast can be used to treat chronic, long-term asthma.
These medications have a steroid-sparing effect and also work well preventing exercise-induced bronchospasms Durham, et al. Lastly, long-acting muscarinic receptor antagonists LAMAs and tiotropium can be added to medication therapy when asthma is still uncontrolled even with the use of two or more controller medications.
Developing a plan of care is of great importance to successfully control asthma and prevent exacerbations. Three important issues that need to be addressed are ineffective airway clearance, impaired gas exchange, and readiness for enhanced health management. In an acute phase, this care plan will address ineffective airway clearance related to asthma.
Auscultation of breath sounds every two essay on asthma four hours is necessary to assess for changes in wheezing or crackles. Respiratory patterns should also be monitored to assess for respirations to remain between 12 to 16 breaths per minute. Increased respiratory rate can signal airway secretions. An acute patient should have the head of bed elevated to between 30 and 45 degrees to allow for maximum expansion of the lungs.
The patient should be educated regarding deep breathing and controlled coughing to help clear excessive airway secretions. Incentive spirometry can also be used to promote clearance of excessive secretions. Encouraging frequent patient mobilization as tolerated. If the patient is nonmobile, changing positions every two hours can be effective. This is to help mobilize secretions.
Asthma Pathophysiology
, time: 10:30Pathophysiology and Etiology of the Asthma - Free Essay Example | blogger.com
Essay on Asthma Asthma 1 Page Asthma is a heterogeneous disorder with a variable course, characterized by episodes of cough, wheezing and shortness of breath, reversible airflow limitation, and bronchial hyper responsiveness. There are two clinical categories of asthma, which generally give rise to identical symptoms and are treated in the Essay on Asthma. Essay on the Medicinal Plants used for the Treatment of Asthamatic Disoders. Essay on the Anti-Asthamatic Plants. Essay # 1. Asthma: Asthma has emerged as a major public health problem worldwide; it continues to be a significant cause of morbidity and blogger.comted Reading Time: 10 mins Asthma is a chronic long term lung disease that inflames and narrows the airways. Asthma causes periods of wheezing, chest tightness, shortness of breath and coughing. Coughing usually occurs at night or early morning, can occur during the day if allergies flares your asthma. The airways are
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