What is bronchial asthma? - Classification, Symptoms, Causes, Treatment, and prevention

Bronchial asthma is known as asthma. It is a disease of the lungs. During this disease, the Airways in a person's lungs get infected. This disease has no permanent treatment. With medication and lifestyle changes, the symptoms of asthma can be controlled.

Bronchial asthma classification

There are many types of bronchial asthma which are:

1. Allergic asthma:

The first type of asthma is allergic asthma, also known as atopic asthma. There are many triggers of this type of asthma which are:

• Pollen 
• Pets
• Dust mites

2. Seasonal asthma :

Seasonal asthma comes back during the hay fever season or in freezing weather. These two seasons trigger asthma symptoms, and asthma symptoms are in control when there are no triggers around.

3. Occupational asthma:

This type of asthma is triggered by the place where you work or belong. If you are a worker in a bakery shop, then your triggers can be flour dust. If you work in the field of health care, then your trigger might be latex.

4. Non-allergic asthma:

This type of asthma is not associated with allergic, seasonal, or occupational asthma. Allergic asthma is not very common compared to other bronchial asthma types.

5. Exercise-induced asthma:

During the exercise induction for asthma, the airways get excessively tightened. The symptoms of this asthma are 

• Tightness of the chest
• Heavy breathing 
• Coughing 
• Extreme fatigue.

6. Difficult asthma:

About 17 %of the population suffers from difficult asthma. The symptoms of this asthma appear more than three times a week.

7. Severe asthma:

This type of asthma is challenging to treat, and regular asthma treatment doesn't have any effect on its symptoms. During this type of asthma, the person needs a reliever twice a week. You may need steroids to control the extreme symptoms of severe asthma.

8. Childhood asthma:

This asthma goes away as a child grows older. This broccoli asthma affects 1.1 million children.

Causes of bronchial asthma

There are several reasons behind bronchial asthma, which are :

• Excessive smoking 
• Food allergies
• Pollen 
• Mold 
• Exercise
• Air pollution 
• Toxins 
• Extreme weather 
• Some drugs (insulin, NSAIDs, beta-blockers)
• Stress and anxiety 
• Perfumes and fragrances can also trigger asthma
• Some acid reflux. 

Bronchial asthma treatment:

There are several medications for the treatment of bronchial asthma. 

1. Inhaled corticosteroids:

The very first type of medication is inhaled corticosteroids. There are some medicines in this type of medication that are

• Fluticasone propionate
• (Flovent HFA, Flovent Diskus, Xhance), budesonide 
• (Pulmicort Flexhaler
• Pulmicort Respules, Rhinocort),
• Ciclesonide (Alvesco),
• Beclomethasone (Qvar Redihaler), 
• Mometasone (Asmanex HFA

2. Leukotriene e modifiers

The second type of medication for bronchial asthma is leukotriene modifiers. But these medicines come with many side effects. They can put psychological side effects such as suicidal thoughts, depression, agitation, and aggressive behavior.

3. Combination inhalers:

This combination works best to lower the extreme level of the symptoms of bronchial asthma .these combination inhalers 

• Fluticasone-salmeterol 
• (Adair HFA, Airduo Digihaler, others),
• Budesonide- formoterol (Symbicort), 
• Formoterol-mometasone (Dulera) 
• Fluticasone furoate-vilanterol (Breo Ellipta) .

4. Quick-relief medications:

These medications are helpful in the treatment of asthma but for a short period. This medication involves 

1. Short-acting beta-agonists: These inhalers give you quick relief within minutes. If a person is having an asthma attack, then the short-acting beta agonists will help to minimize the symptoms of asthma. These agonists come in the form of inhalers.
2. Anticholinergic agents: Anticholinergic agents are medication that helps in the interruption of acetylcholine. This chemical is known to be released during an asthma attack. some  of the most common anticholinergics are
   • Ipratropium bromide
   • Tiotropium bromide
   • Aclidinium bromide.

Prevention of bronchial asthma

There is no proper cure for bronchial asthma; however, the intensity of asthma attacks can be controlled. 

1. You must avoid the trigger which is the reason for the severity of asthma attacks. If your exposure to asthma triggers is often, you must avoid it.
2. Avoid smoking because it is not only worsening the symptoms of asthma but also destroys your lungs. Any type of smoke is dangerous for your bronchial asthma, and that is why you need to avoid all types of smoke, especially tobacco.
3. During extremely cold weather, you must take precautionary measures to avoid getting cold. Cold is another primary reason for making asthma more severe.
4. You must wash your hands if you have shaken hands with someone who is also a respiratory-infected person.
5. Your living environment should be allergy free. Carpet, seepage problems, whitewash, and fragrances are also the reason for worse bronchial asthma. You must keep these things away to keep control of the symptoms of asthma.
6. Flu shots are very helpful in keeping intact the symptoms of asthma. You must take a flu shot almost every year.
7. You must take your asthma medication on time. If bronchial asthma is not treated on time, it can cause more danger to your life.

Bronchial asthma in acute exacerbation

Asthma is a condition in which a person's airways get narrowed due to inflammation. If the symptoms of asthma don't go away and get worse, this is known as exacerbation. During the attack or exacerbation, the airways become so narrow and swollen that it makes it very difficult for a person to breathe. It is severe and life-threatening. there are the following symptoms that show that you have an acute exacerbation of asthma

• Wheezing 
• Severe cough
• The feeling of tightness and chronic pressure in the chest 
• Heavy breathing or shortness of breath.
• Agitation 
• Low working of lungs
• Increased heartbeat
• Hyperventilation 

The exacerbation of asthma is not linked to any single cause. Instead, it is related to multiple  reasons .some of the most general and common  causes of exacerbation of asthma are

• Infection in the respiratory tract
• Cold and flu
• Pets (especially cats and dogs)
• Smoke
• Dry air
• Exercise.

The treatment of exacerbation asthma is very difficult; however, there are several precautions and emergency treatments to control the severity of bronchial asthma:

• Oxygen Administration 
• Inhalers include beta-two agonists such as albuterol (ProAir HFA, Ventolin HFA).
• Corticosteroids. 

Is bronchial asthma life-threatening?

Yes, it is life-threatening if the symptoms of asthma get worse, then it narrows the airways, which as a result, makes it difficult to breathe.

Is bronchial asthma contagious?

Bronchial asthma is not contagious .however, the symptoms of asthma can get worse if not treated on time. Sometimes those bacteria which are the reason behind the infection in the airways can be dangerous or contagious.