What is asthma?

Asthma is a lifelong condition that can make it hard to breathe. It causes the airways that lead to the lungs to swell and get inflamed.

Some people have a hard time breathing only at certain times. This may be during allergy season, when they get a cold, or when they exercise. Others have breathing problems a lot of the time.

When asthma symptoms suddenly get worse (or flare up), the airways tighten and become narrower. This makes it hard to breathe, and you may wheeze or cough. These flare-ups are also called asthma attacks or exacerbations (say "ig-ZAS-ur-BAY-shuns").

Even though asthma is a lifelong condition, treatment can help you feel and breathe better and help keep your lungs healthy.

When you have asthma, you may:

• Wheeze, making a loud or soft whistling noise when you breathe in and out.
• Cough a lot. This is the only symptom for some people.
• Feel tightness in your chest.
• Feel short of breath. You may have rapid, shallow breathing or trouble breathing.
• Have trouble sleeping because you're coughing or having a hard time breathing.
• Get tired quickly during exercise.

Symptoms may start soon after you're around things (triggers) that cause your asthma attacks. This is an early phase response. Or they may start several hours after exposure (late phase response). A late phase response can make it harder to figure out what triggers your symptoms.

Symptoms can be mild or severe. You may have symptoms daily or just now and then. Or you may have something in between.

Some people have symptoms that get worse at night, such as a cough and shortness of breath.

To find out if you have asthma, your doctor will do a physical exam and ask questions about your health.

The doctor may also have you do breathing tests to find out how well your lungs work. These tests include:

Spirometry.

Doctors use this test to diagnose and keep track of asthma. It measures how quickly you can move air in and out of your lungs and how much air you move.

Peak expiratory flow (PEF).

This test shows how much air you can quickly breathe out when you try your hardest.

An exercise or inhalation challenge.

This test measures how well you can breathe after exercise or after taking a medicine.

Asthma can be hard to diagnose because the symptoms vary widely and can also be caused by another lung problem, like pneumonia, or a problem with another organ, like your heart. So your doctor may do other tests, like a chest X-ray.

Asthma is treated with medicine to help you breathe easier, along with self-care.

Medicines used to treat asthma include:

Controller medicines.

These medicines prevent asthma attacks, stop problems before they happen, and reduce inflammation in your lungs. These things help you control your asthma.

Quick-relief medicines.

These medicines are used when you can't prevent symptoms and need to treat them fast.

Oral or injected corticosteroids (systemic corticosteroids).

These medicines may be used to treat asthma attacks.

Treatment also includes things you can do to control your symptoms, like avoiding your triggers and following your asthma action plan.

Take your asthma medicines as prescribed.

• Take your controller medicine. If you have symptoms often, you will likely need to take it every day to prevent problems.
• Use your quick-relief medicine during an asthma attack.
• Learn how to use your inhalers the right way. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for help.

Find ways to avoid your triggers.

Common triggers include smoke, a cold, air pollution, dust, pollen, mold, and pet dander. For example:

• Don't smoke, and don't let others smoke around you. Smoking makes asthma worse.
• Avoid infections such as COVID-19, colds, and the flu. Get the flu vaccine every year, and ask your doctor about getting the pneumococcal shot. Stay up to date on your COVID-19 vaccines.

Follow your asthma action plan.

This is a written plan that will help you control your asthma every day and know what to do during an asthma attack. If you don't have an action plan, work with your doctor to make one.