But quick-relief medicines don't do anything to help prevent an asthma flare-up. That's where long-term control medicines come in. These medicines might not seem to be doing anything. In fact, a kid with asthma might not feel anything at all when taking them. But these medicines are quietly doing important work to control asthma every day. Some people with mild asthma use only quick-relief medicines when they have flare-ups.
Others who have more severe asthma must take quick-relief medicines when they have breathing problems and they need to take long-term control medicines every day. If you have asthma, your doctor will decide which type of medicine you need and how often you need to take it. Health Topics. Health Tools. Reviewed: April 12, Medically Reviewed. Treatment for asthma aims to do the following:. Modern inhaler devices for asthma came into widespread use between the s and the s. Today, inhalers are synonymous with asthma treatment.
Nebulizers let you take your medicine while breathing normally, but they're more time-consuming to set up and use than inhalers. Proper technique is essential when using an inhaler to make sure the medicine reaches your lungs as intended. Here are the steps for proper inhaler use:.
Quick-Relief Medication for Asthma Quick-relief medication, which includes short-acting beta-agonists and anticholinergics, is inhaled with the devices describe above to relieve flare-ups of asthma symptoms. In some cases, usually for severe asthma, corticosteroids which reduce inflammation are needed. These drugs are taken either orally at home or intravenously at a hospital.
Long-term control medication helps prevent asthma symptoms by reducing the inflammation that makes your airways more sensitive to asthma triggers. These drugs are usually prescribed to be taken daily.
Numerous drugs for long-term control are available, including:. Biologics These drugs are made from cells extracted from living organisms — such as bacteria or mice. They are injected drugs, taken every two to four weeks, to prevent your body from reacting to allergenic triggers. They include: omalizumab , mepolizumab , resulizumab, and benralizumab. They are most commonly prescribed for cases of severe asthma. They are also used to treat certain cases of severe asthma.
Step one for everyone, however, is having a firm grasp of your asthma action plan. Work with your doctor to create an asthma action plan that covers how to: Take your medication properly Avoid asthma triggers unrelated to physical activity, such as allergens and airborne irritants Track your asthma control Respond to worsening symptoms Seek emergency care when needed Quit smoking , if you do In addition, monitor your symptoms carefully. A peak flow meter is an inexpensive, handheld device that can help you monitor your condition.
It measures how quickly you can breathe air out of your lungs, an indicator of how well your lungs are functioning.
It's also important to maintain a healthy diet and weight, as being overweight can worsen asthma symptoms. According to an article published in the Journal of Asthma and Allergy, weight loss in obese people is associated with a 48 to percent rate of asthma remission.
Taking certain precautions can also help prevent exercise-related asthma symptoms. Specifically, avoid exercising:. You may need to make changes to your treatment plan to better control your asthma. Anti-inflammatories steroidal come in many different forms. They are also called controllers because they help to control or prevent asthma symptoms.
They reduce swelling and extra mucus inside the airways. They will not relieve sudden symptoms. SMART uses one inhaler that has two medicines combination medicine as a quick-relief and controller medicine. When on SMART, you can either take your medicine only as needed to relieve sudden symptoms, or you can take it daily as a controller and as needed for quick relief.
This is based on your age and the severity of your asthma. There is only one long-acting beta agonist — formoterol — that also works as a quick-relief medicine. It acts quickly to open the airways and relieve sudden symptoms. It also works as a controller by keeping the airways open for up to 12 hours. The FDA has not yet approved these medicines to be used in this way.
Not usually. Although medicines help a lot, they may not be able to do the job alone. You have to avoid the things that cause or trigger your asthma symptoms as much as you can.
Asthma triggers can be found outside or inside your home, school, or workplace. Improving the indoor air quality in your home is an important part of asthma control. Your indoor air can be more polluted than outside air. Our interactive Healthy Home can show you ways to improve the indoor air quality of your home. A healthier home can reduce your exposure to allergens and irritants. Not always.
You will probably take more medicine when you begin treatment to get control of your asthma. Work with your doctor to learn which medicine s control your asthma best and how much you need. Once your asthma is well-controlled, your doctor may be able to reduce the amount of medicine you take. The goal is to gain control of your asthma as soon as possible and then control it with as little medicine as possible. Once long-term anti-inflammatory therapy begins, your doctor should monitor you every one to six months.
This is to see how your asthma medicines are working and if your asthma is well controlled. Maybe not. Asthma is a chronic condition which means you will have it all of your life that is controllable.
Unfortunately, there is no cure for asthma. For that reason, you may have asthma symptoms when exposed to triggers. Your triggers can change over time, and your treatment will depend on two things: how severe your asthma is, and how often you have symptoms.
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