Asthma
Asthma is a disease of chronic inflammatory airways, which results in reducing or even blocking the flow of air. Its pathophysiology is related to interaction between genetic and environmental factors that manifest as attacks of breathlessness due to swelling of the lining bronchial, the overproduction of mucus in the airways and smooth muscle contraction of the airways, with consequent reduction of its diameter (bronchospasm).
Crises are characterized by various symptoms such as dyspnea, cough and wheezing, especially at night. The narrowing of the airways is usually reversible but in patients with chronic asthma, the inflammation can determine airflow obstruction to airflow. Pathologic features include the presence of inflammatory cells in the airways plasma exudation, edema, muscle hypertrophy, mucus plugs and desquamation of the epithelium. The diagnosis is mainly clinical and treatment consists of educational measures, drugs that improve the airflow in asthma and anti-inflammatory, mainly based on steroids.
Signs and symptoms
Characteristically the disease, symptoms appear cyclically with periods of worsening. Among the main symptoms are: a cough that may or may not be accompanied by some sputum (phlegm), shortness of breath with pain or burning in the chest and a wheezing (wheezing). In most cases there is no sputum or have the type “egg”.
Symptoms can occur at any time of day, but tend to predominate in the morning or evening. Asthma is the leading cause of chronic cough in children and is among the leading causes of chronic cough in adults.
Classification
According to the standards of the crises and tests, asthma can be classified in: Intermittent asthma, mild persistent asthma, moderate persistent asthma, severe persistent asthma.
Intermittent Asthma: symptoms less than once a week; bouts of short duration (light); sporadic nocturnal symptoms (no more than twice a month); pulmonary function tests normal in the period between attacks.
Mild persistent asthma: symptoms at least once a week, but less than once a day; presence of nocturnal symptoms more than twice a month, but less than once a week; pulmonary function tests normal in the period between attacks.
Moderate Persistent Asthma: daily symptoms; crises can affect daily activities and sleep; presence of nocturnal symptoms at least once a week; pulmonary function tests: peak expiratory flow (PEF) or forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV