Asthma
By: Nabeeha Ahmed
Brittney Socop
Megan Gomez
Katherine Hernandez
Team Baylor, Period 1
History of Asthma
Asthma had been recognized in Ancient Egypt in the 1870s
It has been recognized by a Greek man named
Hippocrates, and realized it’s a disease related to
respiration (which in Greek, Asthma means wind/air).
The archeologists found over 700 remedies of Asthma
made by Egyptians.
Centuries ago, the most common solution for Asthma was
inhaling a special mix of specific herbs that reduced lung
inflammation.
Symptoms of Asthma
There are several symptoms as to indicating Asthma:
Wheezing when breathing
Coughing uncontrollably at night or in the morning
Having a tight chest
Shorter breaths
Allergies
Factors that cause Asthma symptoms to occur:
Allergies from dust, pollen, grass, animal fur etc.
Smoke, air pollution, chemicals, sprays etc.
Some specific medicines, foods, and drinks
Physical activity
Symptoms of Asthma attacks
Excessive wheezing
Uncontrollable coughing
Rapid breathing
Chest pain/ tight neck and chest
Sweatiness
Blue lips and nails
Prognosis
Asthma is determined depending on your case, the
severity, and depth.
72% of men and 86% of women with Asthma tend to
have 15 years of symptoms.
19% of people who have Asthma live their lives
having to see their doctor frequently, while 32% live
with medication.
Asthma is not a disease as to where it has a proper
treatment to fully heal.
Diagnosis
Symptoms trigger that you may have Asthma. (Wheezing,
shortened breathing, allergies, and etc.)
Simply, the doctor can give you a diagnostic test to see if
you have Asthma. There are various types of tests given,
two are:
Physical Exam- the doctor will analyze your breathing and
determine if you have Asthma or allergies.
Lung Function Test- the doctor will do a test called,
“Spirometry” to measure your breathing in and out. Then
you are put on medication, and again retested to get a final
report to see if you have Asthma.
How Asthma Affects
the Cells
Asthma affects and damages the cell (during attacks) by
having no air reach them.
When no air/oxygen can reach the cells various things
occur:
When brain cells can’t get oxygen, it affects the nervous
system. In three to six minutes without air reaching the
brain, it loses a huge amount of brain cells, because the most
a human brain can go without oxygen is three minutes.
When oxygen cannot reach the body cells, lactic acid will
start to form in the tissues. This can result to serious cramps
and/or heart attacks.
What Organelle Does
Asthma Affect and
How?
Asthma is a disease that affects the lungs.
The lungs contain a tube that take air in and out of the
lungs to the nose or mouth, this tubes’ name is called
Bronchiole(s).
During an Asthma attack, the Bronchioles swell up,
causing air to be trapped and no longer letting any air in
or out. This causes wheezing too, due to the lack of air
reaching the lungs. When Bronchioles swell up, it causes
Bronchiole inflammation and tighter lungs.
The Bronchiole inflammation also causes the flow of
mucus to build up.
How Does Asthma
Spread, Genetics, and
Environment.
Asthma isn’t a contagious disease, it cannot be spread to
one another. It is spread in the human body by cells.
Asthma could be received by genetics, maybe someone in
your family, like your mother or father, may have it. So it
may be passed on to their future generation by bloodline.
Environments have affects on people who have Asthma.
Depending on where are you are, you may have different
symptoms. Being outside could result in grass or pollen
giving you symptoms.
Prevention
Prevention is basically about avoiding factors that
trigger symptoms of Asthma.
Avoid the following to prevent Asthma:
Dust
Pollen
Animal fur
Polluted air
Smoking etc.
Also, take regular provided medication subscripted by
your doctor.
Treatment
Asthma has no actual solution to cure the disease, but
there are ways to reduce it:
Inhaler- a tube that is used when short breathing occurs.
When using it, you push the top of the inhaler and swallow
the medicated oxygen coming out of it. This frees the lungs
and helps you breathe.
Nebulizer- this is similar to an inhaler but is used with mask,
has medicine induced mist instead of oxygen, and is used by
younger children and elderly.
Other Pills- to keep Asthma in control and the chance of
Asthma attacks low, people take pills such as the Prednisone
Pill.
Bibliography
http://www.cdc.gov/asthma/
http://www.news-medical.net/health/Asthma.aspx
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/AsthmaTreatment/story?id
=4864189#.UKQM-0Llf8s
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/healthtopics/topics/asthma/diagnosis.html
http://asthma.about.com/od/asthmabasics/a/asthma_diagn
osi.htm
http://www.allergyandasthma.com/home/articles/historyof-asthma
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/healthtopics/topics/asthma/treatment.html
ANY QUESTIONS ?