i have asthma?

Question

Answer 1

General advice ??: The best advise for an asthma patient is to get a good evaluation, set up a reasonable treatment plan & comply with that plan. Proper followup & a good relationship with your pcp helps assure you can adjust treatment as changes arise.

Answer 2

Easy: You have audible wheezing.

Answer 3

Testing, discussion: Sometimes asthma is easy to spot. You start wheezing and having trouble breathing with exercise or viral illnesses. Or a chronic nighttime cough. However, if you aren't sure, such as a little tight cough after notable exercise, or if you're in the heat a lot, etc, then a visit to your doc can help. Sometimes pulmonary function testing (blowing into a special tube) can show if airflow is normal.

Answer 4

Trial : After you have been prescribed several rounds of antibiotics and otc cough suppressants failed , trial of bronchodilators may help. If definite wheezing noted on exam, inhaled steroid is in order and you will have your life back!

Answer 5

Treatment...: The most common treatment for asthma include bronchodilator and steroid inhalers. Other treatments depend on symptoms present. Avoidance of triggers is an important part of therapy. Avoid smoking. Use a bronchodilator inhaler pre-exercise if you notice an increase of symptoms during exercise. Follow your doctor's instructions.

Answer 6

General advice ??: The best advise for an asthma patient is to get a good evaluation, set up a reasonable treatment plan & comply with that plan. Proper followup & a good relationship with your pcp helps assure you can adjust treatment as changes arise.

Answer 7

Were you tested?: If you have been tested a course of treatment should have been prescribed. Depending on the severity of your asthma, various treatments may be started. Mild infrequent attacks may be treated with a rescue inhaler whereas more frequent severe attacks may require a controller inhaler to be added. The best course must be determined by you and your physician. Good Luck

Answer 8

Lifestyle change: Avoid all milk products since the milk protein causes respiratory tract inflammation. Also avoid gluten containing foods. Getting 30 -45 min of sunshine at noon daily or taking vitamin D3 10,000 IU/day and taking a good probiotic (not yogurt) help reduce inflammation Yoga breathing exercises 10-30 min/day help too. This may help avoid the need for meds

Answer 9

See a doctor: Classic signs and symptoms of asthma--intermittent shortness of breath, cough, wheezing, chest tightness, are not specific enough for you to make your own diagnosis. Other conditions--heart disease, gastroesophageal reflux disease, chronic sinusitis can cause similar symptoms. Asthma is diagnosed through history, physical exam and laboratory tests. If asthma is concerning you, see your doctor.

Answer 10

Stop smoking: Smoke (from cigarettes, campfires, forest fires, stoves, fireplace etc) all give off fumes and particulate matter which can be inhaled deep into the lungs and trigger inflammation, swelling, mucus production and airway narrowing. Smoke will worsen asthma and progressively decrease lung function over time. See your doc for smoking cessation information.

Answer 11

Make a choice: A smoker who has asthma is like a person who always picks at their scabs.They make healing hard.If you want to live long, require less medication & have fewer events, stop.If your asthma is mild & you don't care how long you live, keep it up.

Answer 12

Speak to your doctor: Asthma is recurrent episodes of bronchospasm, shown by wheezing/coughing and can be set off by allergic triggers, exercise, viral illnesses, cold/temperature changes.

Answer 13

Asthma diagnosis: Asthma is diagnosed based on history, examination and lung function test called spirometry. There are alternative diagnosis which can present similarly and it is an uncommon thing for people to develop new onset asthma at the age of 57 . Investigations to rule out alternative diagnoses are very very important . See your GP immediately .

Answer 14

Doctor diagnosis : Asthma is a diagnosis that is best made by your doctor. Typical symptoms include wheeze and breathlessness, however there are other illnesses that can cause these symptoms, thus best to see your family doctor, it is unusual to be diagnosed with asthma after middle adulthood

Answer 15

See below: Often history gives the diagnosis away. For asthma, unless you are having an exacerbation, there are no physical signs typically. A pulmonary function test would be the first test to diagnose asthma. It would likely be normal if you are not having an exacerbation. Then a methacholine challenge test would be ordered to confirm.

Answer 16

Get checked: The symptoms of asthma, wheezing, coughing, difficulty breathing are common in other conditions as well. A physician can perform a spirometry -non-invasive- test coupled with your history to make a diagnosis.

Answer 17

Get checked: Some signs of asthma include night time cough that awakens you or lasts longer at night, coughing and chest pain with exercise or laughter, wheezing or chest tightness with colds. However, these symptoms can also present with other illnesses. If a physician suspects you have asthma, they would likely prescribe albuterol, a muscle relaxant, for the onset of symptoms and see if that relieves them.

Answer 18

Asthma DX: Do a pulmonary function test wait 15 to 20 minutes after inhaling a bronchodilator and the repeat the test. The test must be done according to american thoracic society guidelines and you use maximum effort to do the test. No bronchodilators should be used beforehand to throw the test off. The doctor will then tell you if you have asthma and will correlate this with your history and physical exam.

Answer 19

Spirometry: Asthma is a clinical and spirometric diagnosis. Histamine or methacholine challenge may be very helpful if testing is not clear. All that wheezes is not asthma.

Answer 20

Not likely: You should see your family physician and give a good history of your attacks, family history of asthma, etc . You should also have a spirometry test to rule out or confirm asthma. Often other conditions seem to mimic asthma but are something else entirely.

Answer 21

A complex disease: Asthma can be allergy linked, occupational linked or triggered by other things like cold, exercise, strong emotions, etc. Regardless of the "trigger(s)" treatment with rescue inhalers and possibly "controllers when attacks are frequent are the key to control.

Answer 22

Check this website: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/asthma Avoid all milk products since the milk protein causes respiratory tract inflammation. Also avoid grains, lentils. Consume veggies, flesh foods, olive oil. Getting 30 -45 min of sunshine at noon daily or taking vitamin D3 10,000 IU/day and taking a good probiotic (not yogurt) help reduce inflammation This may help avoid the need for meds

i have asthma?

Ask U.S. doctors your own question and get educational, text answers — it's anonymous and free!

90,000 U.S. doctors in 147 specialties are here to answer your questions or offer you advice, prescriptions, and more. Get help now:

Similar questions

How can I find if I have asthma?

I have asthma so I must do?

How do I know if I have asthma (important)?

What should I do if I have asthma but i smoke?

How can I tell if I have asthma?

Related questions

90,000 U.S. doctors in 147 specialties are here to answer your questions or offer you advice, prescriptions, and more. Get help now:

People also asked

Disclaimer:

Get the free app for Members

Get the free app for Doctors