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Asthma occurs because of inflammation and mucus in the lining of your airways. During an attack, this inflammation causes a wheezing or whistling sound when you breathe, along with other

symptoms.

Asthma is an inflammatory disease that can affect the airways to your lungs. It makes breathing difficult and can make some physical activities challenging or even impossible.

To understand asthma, it’s necessary to know a little about what happens when you breathe. Usually, with every breath you take, air goes through your nose or mouth, down into your throat,

and into your airways, eventually reaching your lungs.

There are lots of small air passages in your lungs that help deliver oxygen from the air to your bloodstream.

Asthma symptoms happen when the lining of your airways swells and the muscles around them tighten. Mucus then fills your airways, further reducing the amount of air that can pass through.

These effects can bring on an asthma “attack,” which involves the coughing and chest tightness that are typical of asthma.

The most common symptom of asthma is wheezing — a squealing or whistling sound that happens when you breathe.

The type of asthma you have can determine which symptoms you experience.

Some people experience symptoms consistently throughout the day. Others may find that certain activities make their symptoms worse.

But not everyone with asthma will experience these particular symptoms. If you think the symptoms you’re experiencing could be related to a condition such as asthma, make an appointment to

see a healthcare professional.

If you have asthma, remember that even if your condition is well managed, you may occasionally have a flare-up of symptoms. Flare-ups often decrease with the use of quick-acting treatments,

such as inhalers, but may require medical attention in severe cases.

If your symptoms worsen or don’t improve with the use of an inhaler, you should seek immediate medical treatment.

You should also seek treatment if you have symptoms of an asthma emergency, such as:

If you or someone around you is experiencing symptoms of an asthma emergency, call 911 or your local emergency number or go to the nearest emergency department.

Although asthma is especially common in children, many people don’t develop asthma until adulthood.

Health experts have not identified a specific cause of asthma. Instead, researchers believe it’s caused by a variety of factors, including:

Many factors can also trigger asthma, causing the symptoms to worsen. Triggers for asthma can vary, and some people may be more sensitive to certain triggers than others.

Your doctor will need to determine the type of asthma you have. The most common type is allergic asthma, which accounts for 60% of all cases of asthma.

Some types of asthma are related to your stage of life. While asthma can appear at any age, pediatric asthma specifically affects children, and adult-onset asthma doesn’t begin until

adulthood.

This common type of asthma is triggered by allergens, including:

Allergic asthma is often seasonal because it goes hand-in-hand with seasonal allergies.

Irritants in the air that are not related to allergies trigger this type of asthma. These irritants might include:

Occupational asthma is triggered by irritants in the workplace, such as:

These irritants can exist in a wide range of industries, including:

EIB usually affects people within a few minutes of starting exercise and can last until 10–15 minutes after physical activity.

This condition was previously called exercise-induced asthma.

Up to 90% of people with asthma also experience EIB, but not everyone with EIB will have other types of asthma.

Aspirin-induced asthma (AIA), or aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease, is usually severe.

It’s triggered by taking aspirin or another NSAID, such as naproxen (Aleve) or ibuprofen (Advil).

The symptoms may begin within minutes or hours. People with AIA also typically have nasal polyps.

About 9% of people with asthma have AIA. It usually develops suddenly in adults ages 20–50 years.

Your body’s natural sleep cycle may also trigger nocturnal asthma.

CVA doesn’t cause the classic asthma symptoms of wheezing and shortness of breath. Instead, it involves a persistent dry cough.

However, if it’s not treated, CVA can lead to full-blown asthma flares that include the more common symptoms.

No single test or exam can determine whether you or your child has asthma. Instead, healthcare professionals will use a variety of criteria to find out whether your symptoms are the result

of asthma.

The following steps can help healthcare professionals diagnose asthma:

Doctors don’t typically perform breathing tests in children under 5 years of age because it’s difficult to get an accurate reading.

Instead, they may prescribe asthma medications to your child and wait to see whether their symptoms improve. If your child’s symptoms improve with medication, your child likely has asthma.

Your doctor may prescribe a bronchodilator or another asthma medication if your test results indicate asthma. If your symptoms improve with the use of this medication, your doctor will

continue to treat your condition as asthma.

To help treat asthma, the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) classifies the condition based on its severity before treatment.

Your doctor will recommend one treatment or a combination of treatments based on:

Your treatment plan may also involve learning your triggers, carefully monitoring your symptoms, and taking steps to avoid flare-ups.

These medications should be used only in the event of asthma symptoms or an attack. They provide quick relief to help you breathe again.

Bronchodilators work within minutes to relax the tightened muscles around your airways and quickly decrease your symptoms.

Although they can come in the form of an oral medication or injection, bronchodilators are most commonly taken with an inhaler (rescue) or nebulizer.

Your doctor may recommend that you use them to treat sudden asthma symptoms or take them before exercise to prevent a flare-up.

If you think someone you know is having an asthma attack, tell them to sit them upright and help them use their rescue inhaler or nebulizer.

The dosage will depend on the medication. Check the instructions insert to make sure you know how many puffs of medications you need in the event of an attack.

If symptoms persist for more than 20 minutes and a second round of medication doesn’t help, seek emergency medical attention.

If you need to use quick-relief medications frequently, ask your doctor about another type of medication for long-term asthma control.

You can take these medications daily to help reduce the number and severity of asthma symptoms. But they don’t manage the immediate symptoms of an attack.

Doctors use biologics to treat severe asthma that doesn’t respond to other medications or to treatment by trigger management.

They work by targeting specific antibodies in your body, disrupting the pathway that leads to asthma-causing inflammation.

There are five types of biologic medications on the market, and others are in development. You can receive this type of medication either as an injection or as an infusion in your doctor’s

office.

This treatment uses an electrode to heat the airways inside your lungs, helping to reduce the size of the surrounding muscle and prevent it from tightening.

A doctor will perform this minimally invasive procedure in a clinic or hospital. It usually takes about an hour.

Bronchial thermoplasty is intended for people with severe asthma and can provide relief from symptoms for up to 5 years.

However, because it’s a relatively new procedure, it’s not yet widely available.

When your asthma symptoms get progressively worse, it’s known as an exacerbation, or an asthma attack.

Breathing becomes increasingly difficult because your airways are swollen and your bronchial tubes have narrowed.

Although an exacerbation can end quickly without medication, you should contact your doctor when you experience one, because it can be life threatening.

The longer an exacerbation lasts, the more it can affect your ability to breathe. That’s why exacerbations often require a trip to the emergency room.

You can help prevent exacerbations by taking medications that help manage your asthma symptoms.

Because researchers have not yet found the exact cause, it’s challenging to know how to prevent asthma.

But some strategies can help prevent asthma attacks, including:

Your doctor can help you create an asthma action plan so you know which treatments to use and when.

In addition to using maintenance medications, you can take steps each day to improve your overall health and reduce your risk for asthma attacks. These include:

At the moment, there’s no cure for asthma. But there are many effective treatments that can decrease the symptoms. Lifestyle strategies and medications can also help improve your quality of

life.

If you haven’t received an asthma diagnosis but you’re experiencing symptoms such as wheezing, coughing, and shortness of breath, it’s a good idea to make an appointment with a healthcare

professional. You can find one in your area using the Healthline FindCare tool.

If you receive a diagnosis of asthma, you should see your doctor at least once per year. If you have persistent symptoms even after trying some treatments, you may need to see your doctor

more often.

It’s important to learn about your condition and its symptoms. The more you know, the more proactive you can be in improving your lung function and how you feel.

Most inhalers are safe to use for up to 1 year after their expiration date. However, the medication will gradually lose its potency over time, and the manufacturer can no longer guarantee

its effectiveness.

While asthma attacks can be mild and short, a severe asthma attack is a serious medical condition and has the potential to be fatal. Seek medical attention if you or someone else experiences

the following symptoms:

An anxiety attack and an asthma attack can sometimes feel very similar, as both can involve shortness of breath, insomnia, and fatigue.

Watch for wheezing and coughing, which are clear symptoms of asthma. Choking sensations and muscle tension are more common in an anxiety attack.

Asthma is a condition that inflames your lungs and makes breathing difficult. It can affect both adults and children and has multiple forms and varying levels of severity.

There are some medications available to treat asthma. The most common treatments are bronchodilators, which can be used in the short term to treat an asthma attack or in the long term to

manage symptoms over time.

Lifestyle strategies such as dietary changes, exercise, and stress management may also help reduce asthma flare-ups. A doctor can identify the type of asthma you have and help you find the

best treatment and management options.

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