Asthma Treatment

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The mainstay of conventional treatment is medication, primarily with oral or inhaled bronchodilators like albuterol (Proventil, Ventolin), isoetharine (Bronkometer, Bronkosol),isoproterenol (isuprel), metaproterenol (Alupent), and terbutaline (Brethaire, Brethine, Bricanyl).These medications work to open up the airway, easing breathing. They can cause a variety of side effects, including nervousness, increased heart rate, tremors, increased blood pressure, and dizziness.

In more advanced or chronic case of asthma, corticosteroids may be prescribed, in either oral or inhaled form. Inhaler forms include beclomethasone (Beclovent, Vanceril, Vancenase, Beconase), fluticasone (Flovent), and triamcinolone(Azmacort, Nasacort), Prednisone is the most commonly prescribed oral form. These medicines work by decreasing the swelling and inflammation of the airways, but they do have several disadvantages. First, they have an adverse affect on the functioning of the immune system and the adrenal glands. Oral yeast infection can be a problem with inhaler forms. All steroids have the potential to cause significant side effects, especially when taken over the long term, that need to be understood. Talk this over with your doctor or pharmacist.

Relatively new classes of drugs known as antimediators are now often used to prevent acute attacks. They work by stabilizing mast cells in the body. In response to certain stimuli, mast cells release chemicals that set in motion a chain of biochemical reactions that can lead to constriction of the airways; by stabilizing the mast cells, you may be able to stop this entire process before it begins. These drugs are comparatively nontoxic. In fact, they are slightly altered, patented forms of bioflavonoids, which are used in conjunction with vitamin C in nutritional therapy for allergy, colds, and asthma. Drugs of this type include cromolyn sodium (Intel, Nasalcrom) and nedocromil sodium(Tilade). Another type of antimediator is called the leukotriene receptor antagonist (LTRA). These drugs also inhabit the action of chemicals that can initiate an asthma attack. Example include montelukast(singular) and zafirlukast (Accolate). Possible side effects include headache, liver stress, fatigue, fever, and gastrointestinal distress.

Theophylline and related drugs, once commonly prescribed for asthma, are less often used today because they are more likely to cause side effects such as restlessness, insomnia, headache, loss of appetite, increased heart rate, dizziness, nausea, and vomiting. Long-term use of theophylline may also be associated with behavioral problems and learning disabilities, although the evidence for this is not conclusive.

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