Highlights
- Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease affecting the airways in the lungs.
- There is no known cure for asthma, but there are a number of medical treatments and steps you can take to manage it.
- BidRx can help you find the lowest price for your asthma medications.
25 million people in the United States, or one out of every thirteen, has some form of asthma, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. The Foundation further notes that 40 percent of those have had an asthma attack in the last year. In 2018 (the most recent report available), asthma was responsible for nearly 6 million doctors’ visits. If you suffer from asthma, BidRx can help you manage it.
What Is Asthma?
Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease that affects the airways in the lungs and can develop at any point in your life. People with intermittent asthma may experience symptoms less than twice a week, while those with persistent asthma may experience them all the time. Asthma is different from other airway diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD, as it’s reversible with medication.
An asthma attack occurs when airways become inflamed suddenly, making it difficult to breathe. These range in severity from uncomfortable to life-threatening.
Asthma Causes
There’s no one specific known cause of asthma, and current medical thought is that it involves a complex mix of genetic and environmental factors. In particular, exposure to airborne fumes and particles seems to be a common factor in many asthma diagnoses. Genetically, a family history of asthma, eczema, or hay fever (allergic rhinitis) seems to point to higher asthma risk.
Asthma Symptoms
The most common symptoms of asthma are recurring breathing problems, including:
- Wheezing
- Shortness of breath
- Coughing
- A tightness in the chest
- Difficulty coughing up sputum from the lungs
- Pus-like sputum
These symptoms are generally worse during the night and early morning and can often manifest after exercise or sudden exposure to cold air.
Asthma Diagnosis
Asthma isn’t easily diagnosed and is often determined through differential diagnosis, where your doctor tries different courses of treatment to see how you respond. For example, people experiencing sinusitis will often have many of the same symptoms, but they won’t respond to asthma treatment. Adding to the complexity is the fact that other diseases, like COPD, can be present alongside asthma.
If you’re concerned about your breathing, your doctor will review your medical and work history and ask you a few questions about how you feel in certain situations, like when you’re near smoke or exercising heavily, or if there are seasonal factors like pollen. Since asthma can be induced or aggravated by a number of common substances, you’ll be asked to stop consuming them and see if that has an impact.
You’ll also take a few tests to rule out other conditions, such as enlarged lymph nodes. Once other conditions are ruled out, you’ll monitor your symptoms to determine severity and proceed from there.
Asthma Risk Factors
In addition to genetics and general environmental factors, there are a few other risk factors to know about:
- Chemical exposure. Some solvents and chemicals, such as formaldehyde, can off-gas or emit fumes that inflame airways if inhaled without proper protection. Workers who handle them regularly often report asthma symptoms. Dust and particles can also trigger asthma-like symptoms.
- Exercise-related bronchoconstriction. There’s no evidence that intense exercise can aggravate asthma long term, but certain types of exercise, like cycling and swimming, can lead to asthma-like symptoms, especially after a long session.
- Infections and airway injuries. Though research is ongoing, in some cases asthma may be caused by an unrelated infection.
- Substance-related asthma. Common substances like alcohol and aspirin can aggravate asthma. Sulfites in food have also been found to be a factor in some people, leading to dietary changes. In other cases, what’s normally a mild food allergy can provoke symptoms in a person with asthma.
Asthma Complications
The most well-known complication from asthma is the asthma attack, medically known as an acute asthma exacerbation. In an attack, the airways become inflamed, causing wheezing, shortness of breath, and chest tightness.
These attacks can interfere with daily life, keeping you out of school or work and interfering with sleep. Over time, recurrent attacks can reshape airways, narrowing them and making it harder to breathe.
Long-term asthma treatments present their own concerns. Corticosteroids, for example, may contribute to bone loss and osteoporosis when taken over a long period of time. Before starting any long-term medication regimen, ask your doctor about possible side effects and what you should watch out for.
Asthma Treatment
Asthma treatment, or more commonly, asthma management, is divided into three categories:
- Lifestyle changes. People with asthma need to remove asthma triggers from their daily life. While some changes are obvious, like limiting air pollution and pollen, you may also need to change your diet, develop an exercise plan, and take other steps. Discuss lifestyle changes with your doctor, particularly as the study of asthma is constantly evolving.
- Short-term management. Inhaled medications such as short-acting beta2-adrenoceptor agonists (SABA) or corticosteroids (often called rescue inhalers) help to relieve inflammation and open up airways during an exacerbation.
- Long-term control. Many people with asthma need to use both short-term and long-term measures to control their symptoms. Long-term treatment involves the use of long-term medications to fight inflammation and limit flare-ups.
To learn more about asthma medications, read our Reference Guide to Asthma Medications.
Find the Lowest Price For Your Asthma Medication
If you have asthma, the right medication can make a major difference in your quality of life. BidRx helps you get the best price for the asthma medications you need to live well and breathe freely.
It starts working when you submit a bid, asking pharmacists across our network to meet your prescription for the lowest price. Simply pick from the bids and you can have your medication shipped to your door or pick it up at a local pharmacy, depending on on the offer you choose.
Managing asthma shouldn’t consume your life, or your pocketbook. With BidRx, you can get the lowest price for your asthma medications, so you can focus on living your life.
