The classic symptoms of asthma include wheezing, coughing, tightness in your chest, and feeling short of breath. But other conditions — like allergies, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), sleep apnea, and post nasal drip — can trigger the same problems.
Allergies, anxiety, exercise and illness (like the common cold or the flu) can cause acute dyspnea. More serious conditions, like a heart attack, sudden airway narrowing (anaphylaxis) or blood clot (pulmonary embolism) can also cause acute dyspnea.
Conditions that can mimic asthma include: Sinusitis: Also called a sinus infection; an inflammation or swelling of the sinuses. Sinusitis and asthma often coexist. Myocardial ischemia: A disease of heart function characterized by inadequate blood flow to the muscle tissue of the heart.
Seek emergency treatment
Signs of an asthma emergency include: Rapid worsening of shortness of breath or wheezing. No improvement even after using a quick-relief inhaler. Shortness of breath when you are doing minimal physical activity.
As stated before, silent asthma has the absence of coughing or wheezing. One reason why you may not experience coughing or wheezing is that your airways haven't tightened enough to restrict airflow through your bronchioles. This restriction of your bronchioles is what causes wheezing or very faint wheezing noises.
Increased mucus production: is characterized by high levels of thick fluid or phlegm accumulating in your airways. Difficulty breathing while exercising: having trouble breathing while performing physical activities can be a sign of asthma.
The classic symptoms of asthma include wheezing, coughing, tightness in your chest, and feeling short of breath. But other conditions — like allergies, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), sleep apnea, and post nasal drip — can trigger the same problems. Take allergies, for example.
Lung function tests: To confirm asthma, your doctor may have you take one or more breathing tests known as lung function tests. (These are also called pulmonary function tests.) Lung function tests detect how well you inhale (breathe in) and exhale (breathe out) air from your lungs. These tests measure your breathing.
An attack is usually characterized by audible sounds, such as gasping or wheezing. However, not all asthma attacks cause audible symptoms. This is known as silent asthma. Silent asthma causes other symptoms, including tightness in the chest, yawning, sighing, and difficulty catching your breath.
Long-term breathlessness is usually caused by: obesity or being unfit. poorly controlled asthma. chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) – permanent damage to the lungs usually caused by years of smoking.
Assessment of the body
Those experiencing heart failure may have a hard time breathing while lying flat. Their feet and ankles may be swollen. Their stomachs may appear bloated. Asthma usually does not present with a bloated stomach or feet or ankle swelling.
The most common factors for developing asthma are having a parent with asthma, having a severe respiratory infection as a child, having an allergic condition, or being exposed to certain chemical irritants or industrial dusts in the workplace.
Take a deep breath in and place the peak flow meter mouthpiece closely and tightly around your lips. Do not put your tongue inside the mouthpiece. Breathe out as forcefully as you can, using a huff-like motion, for no longer than one second. Write down the reading on the gauge.
First stage: intermittent asthma
At this stage, asthma is likely more of on occasional bothersome occurrence, rather than a disease that interferes significantly with day to day quality of life.
Asthma can begin at any age, but it most often starts during childhood when your child's immune system is still developing. Most children who get asthma have their first symptom by age 5. Asthma can cause your child to miss school and even end up in the hospital.
Early warning signs of an asthma attack include: Frequent cough, especially at night. Losing your breath easily or shortness of breath. Feeling very tired or weak when exercising.
Can asthma go away on its own or can you outgrow asthma? Yes, some people have childhood asthma, and its symptoms decrease with age. This is more likely for people who have mild asthma.
The most common signs of asthma are: Coughing, especially at night, during exercise or when laughing. Difficulty breathing. Chest tightness.
Eosinophilic asthma is a rare type of asthma. It's often severe and usually comes on in adults. The main treatment for asthma -- drugs called inhaled corticosteroids -- don't have much of an effect on it, even in high doses.
Spirometry is a simple test used to help diagnose and monitor certain lung conditions by measuring how much air you can breathe out in one forced breath. It's carried out using a device called a spirometer, which is a small machine attached by a cable to a mouthpiece.
Key Facts. If your breathing has become labored and difficult for no obvious reason, it may be the sign of a more serious medical problem. If chest pain or pressure, fainting or nausea accompanies shortness of breath, you should treat it as a medical emergency.