Asthma l Brief Medical Study

Please Become a Messenger of Peace!

Allergology and Clinical Immunology

After starting school on Monday, I took four classes. COVID-19 has replaced all of them with online lectures. I took two courses in allergology and clinical immunology.

Today, I’m going to summarize a little bit about asthma.

Prevalence

• 300 million people worldwide
• Global prevalence: 1 – 18% of population
• Childhood (M > F), after puberty (M < F), adulthood (M < F)
• Asymptomatic during adolescence → return during adult

Definition

• Sx: dyspnea, cough, wheezing, chest tightness
• Chronic airway inflammation
• Reversible airflow obstruction
• Airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR)
• Heterogeneous disease
• Syndrome

Risk factors

• Atopy
• Genetic predisposition
• Infection [respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), atypical bacteria]
  → hygiene hypothesis
• Diet (low in antioxidants & omega-3 polyunsaturated fats, high in sodium & omega-6 polyunsaturated fats, vitamin D deficiency)
• Air pollution
• Allergens
• Occupational exposure
• Obesity

Triggers

• Allergen
• Virus infection (rhinovirus, RSV, coronavirus)
  → Atypical bacteria
• Pharmacologic agent [beta blocker, angiotensin-converting enzyme
• inhibitor (ACEI), aspirin]
• Exercise
• Physical factor (cold air, hyperventilation, laughter, hot weather, weather change, strong smells, perfume)
• Food additive (metabisulfite, tartrazine)
• Air pollution
• Occupational factor
• Hormones (premenstrual worsening of asthma, thyrotoxicosis & hypothyroidism)
• Gastroesophageal reflux (GERD)
• Stress (not very severe stress)

Asthma-like Symptoms

• Do you often catch a cold?
• Do you cough for more than a month if you catch a cold?
• Do you cough and wake up at 1 or 2 AM?
• Is it accompanied by a wheezing during normal breathing or prolonged phase of forced exhalation?
• Do you have difficulty breathing when you exercise?
• Nose : rhinitis, sinusitis, nasal polyps
• Do you have a family history for allergic diseases?

If this medical information violates copyright, I’ll have it erased immediately. I wrote it down for personal study, so please be generous.

In fact, most of them come out when you search for them. If you have symptoms like asthma, make sure to visit a nearby hospital!

If you need professional knowledge,
https://www.niaid.nih.gov/clinical-trials/asthma-studies
https://ginasthma.org/

Peace is up to you :0 Good luck!