Asthma Facts

Asthma is a chronic lung condition that affects millions of people throughout the world. It can range in severity from relatively minor to being life-threatening. Asthma sufferers include both children and adults. Amongst children, asthma is the most prevalent chronic medical illness.

At this point in time, there is no known cure for asthma, but most people who suffer from asthma are able to live normal lives and go about their regular daily activities when they follow the appropriate medical treatment and preventive measures as recommended by their physician.

Asthma appears to have a hereditary component. The child of one parent with asthma has about a 33% chance of developing it. He has a 70% chance of developing asthma if both his parents are asthma sufferers.

In children, more males than females have asthma. Ironically, in adults it is the opposite, with more females than males having the condition. There also appears to be an ethnic component to asthma. Far more African Americans are diagnosed with asthma than Caucasians, and they are much more likely to be hospitalized for an asthma episode than Caucasians.

While asthma is a chronic condition, the symptoms of asthma may be experienced episodically by many people. Many asthma patients go weeks or months with little or no symptoms or attacks, while others may experience some degree of symptoms very frequently.

When asthma symptoms occur it is usually referred to as an episode or an attack. The most commonly experienced symptoms of an asthma attack are coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and chest tightness or pain. An asthma attack is usually triggered by something. It may be an allergen, such as pollen or dust, or an irritant, such as smoke or perfume. It can also be triggered by vigorous exercise or physical exertion, and stress and anxiety.

Asthma is usually treated by a combination of medication and preventive measures. There are different types of medications used to treat asthma. These often include short-acting medications such as rescue inhalers that are used to quickly alleviate the symptoms of an asthma attack, and long-acting medications that are taken regularly that help to reduce the risks of having an asthma attack.

According to asthma facts reported by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, (AAFA), asthma accounts for nearly one out of four emergency room visits, and nearly a half million hospitalizations each year. And nearly 11 people die from asthma per day in the United States.