How is asthma normally treated?

1.3 How is asthma normally treated?

: 1.3.1 How is an acute asthma attack treated?

1.3 How is asthma normally treated?

Treatment of mild asthma usually tries to relieve occasional symptoms as they occur by use of short-acting, inhaled bronchodilators. Treatment of moderate or severe asthma, however, attempts to alleviate both the constriction and inflammation of the airways, through the use of both bronchodilators and anti-inflammatories. Bronchodilators are drugs which open up or dilate the constricted airways, while drugs aimed at reducing inflammation of the airways are called anti-inflammatories.

Taking anti-inflammatory drugs (usually inhaled corticosteroids) daily for moderate to severe asthma is a relatively new approach to treating asthma. The idea behind it is that if the underlying inflammation of the airways is reduced, the bronchi may become less hyperreactive, making future attacks less likely. Such anti-inflammatory therapy, however, must be taken regularly in order to be effective.

For asthma which is strongly triggered by allergies, allergen avoidance can often greatly reduce the amount of medication needed to control the asthma. Taking anti-allergic medications or taking shots for allergy desensitization are other alternatives. For more information about allergen avoidance and allergies in general, please see the alt.support.asthma FAQ: Allergies -- General Information (still under construction).

1.3.1 How is an acute asthma attack treated?

An acute asthma attack is usually treated by us of bronchodilators to reduce the constriction of the airways. Intravenous adrenalin and theophylline are often given in emergency rooms for this purpose, if short-acting bronchodilators given by nebulizer haven't sufficiently controlled the attack.

Once the acute attack is over, anti-inflammatories may be used to reduce the inflammation of the airways. Inhaled steroids are usually the first choice, but for a sufficiently severe attack, oral steroids such as prednisone may also be given.

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