Typical symptoms include shortness of breath, chest tightness, coughing and wheezing. But not all people experience these symptoms. In some, the only symptom may be a chronic cough, especially at night or after exercising.
These normally begin within minutes of exposure to triggers such as allergens or environmental irritants, cold air and certain medications and may last for a few minutes. More serious episodes may last for hours or even days. These flare-ups can occur at any time but often strike during the early morning hours. Nocturnal asthma may begin two to three hours after you sleep and may cause you to wake up gasping for breath.
Others experience restlessness during sleep, fatigue, an itchy or scratchy throat, itchy or watery eyes, and nasal and sinus congestion.
Asthmatics wheeze and cough because their airways are inflamed and filled with mucus. This makes it difficult for air to move in and out of the lungs. That's the reason why asthmatics find it hard to breathe. These symptoms are caused by the body's over-reaction to normally harmless substances like pollen, sudden weather changes, or indoor and outdoor airborne allergens.
While wheezing (a musical whistling sound during breathing) is one of the symptoms of asthma, not all asthmatics wheeze. In fact, some people don't have any symptoms and may not be aware that they have asthma. They may just feel tired most of the time, lack energy or seem to run out of breath easily. In most children, cough is the only symptom of asthma.
To help your doctor diagnose asthma, take note of your symptoms and tell your doctor about them. Observe when they occur, what you were doing at that time, how long they lasted as well as other pertinent information.
If your symptoms follow exposure to certain asthma triggers and occur at night or after exercise, you probably have asthma, more so if you have a family history of the disease. This will be confirmed through breathing and allergy tests or other laboratory tests.
Your doctor will also check how well you respond to asthma medications, especially short-acting bronchodilators that quickly relieve asthma attacks. To prevent further attacks, your doctor may prescribe anti-inflammatory medicines that stop inflammation and mucus production.
What are common asthma triggers and how can you avoid them? Find out in the third part of our series. Don't miss it!
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