What Are The Treatments Of Asthma And How To Put It Under Control?

Most people are predominantly aware of what is asthma. It is one of the major chronic diseases that needs to be given serious attention to. The inflammations of the respiratory system give rise to disease, which in turn causes the lungs to become narrow and results in difficulty of breathing. According to the data released by the Ministry of Health Malaysia in 2019, there was an increment in the number of individuals in Malaysia who suffer from asthma by 15.8%, and figuratively quite alarming. Many people have a question such as how to cure asthma forever. So far, there is no medication that can completely cure asthma but the disease can be controlled with proper medications. Thus, education on asthma treatment is important to alleviate the disease, thereby reducing the risk of mortality.

Asthma Treatment Methods

Asthma treatment can be categorized into two parts, namely pharmacological and non-pharmacological. Pharmacological treatment uses medication, while non-pharmacological treatment is a treatment without medication. 

Conventionally, asthma can be treated with regular medications. Factors such as age, symptoms, or trigger factors should be taken into consideration in treating asthma. In most cases, the treatment of asthma in adults is divided into three parts. Relievers are given to asthmatic patients for short-term relief while preventive and controller drugs are given for long-term treatment. The medicine is prescribed to the patients according to their needs and the severity of asthma. 

Reliever ​

• Terbutaline
• Salbutamol

Reliever drugs, also called bronchodilators are known as short-acting β-agonists that aim to relieve the symptoms by opening the airways of patients, thus making them easier to breathe.

Reliever drugs are used for shortness of breath, irregular heartbeat or wheezing, chest pain, and cough. This medication, commonly in the form of a blue or grey puffer, gives an immediate effect, but this medicine only acts as a temporary relief. Examples of reliever drugs are terbutaline (Bricanyl) and salbutamol (Ventolin).

Someone with asthma should bring this medicine along with them because acute asthma attacks can happen at any time. This medicine works within a few minutes and only can last up to 4 or 6 hours and then they need to repeat the usage periodically.

This asthma treatment is recommended for those who experience infrequent symptoms. However, this type of medication has side effects such as restlessness, sweating, muscle cramps, and agitation. 

For a serious asthma attack, a reliever may not be enough to treat the symptoms of an asthma attack. Therefore, the patient should be taken to the hospital for further treatments such as in case of emergency, the usage of nebulizers or other treatments respectively might be necessary. 

Preventer ​

• Beclometasone
• Montelukast
• Nedocromil

Preventative medications help to put asthma under control by preventing asthma attacks. The functions are to reduce inflammations such as redness or swelling in the airways and hence prevent the sensitivity of the lungs. 

Preventive medications contain steroids. It is used twice a day to ease breathing. Corticosteroid medications commonly in form of brown or red colour known as beclometasone should be used wisely for several months and you can reduce the dose once the symptoms gradually subside according to the advice of the doctor.

Corticosteroid medications are usually given by doctors to patients who experience asthma symptoms more than twice per month. Preventative medications take days or weeks before you can see the effect. Therefore, you are advised to use this medicine on a daily basis even if you are asymptomatic.

Preventive drugs in the form of corticosteroids typically come with side effects such as the growth of candidiasis in the mouth and throat. Therefore, you are encouraged to gargle after taking this type of medication to prevent unwanted fungal infections.

Controller ​

1. Salmeterol
2. Fluticasone

Controller drugs have two-in-one use, the combination of relievers and corticosteroids that act over a long period of time are called long-acting β-agonists.

This medicine is given for the treatment of chronic asthma which is difficult to control with preventative medications or when having a sudden asthma attack for instance after engaging with physical activities such as sports or strenuous exercises.

This inhaled medicine can provide relief for up to 12 hours. Common side effects of this drug are headaches, nervousness, cramps, nausea, joint pain, and others.

Allergy medication

Besides that, other treatments such as allergy medications aid asthmatic patients with allergies symptoms. An example of allergy medication is antihistamines.

There are also allergy injection treatments or so-called immunotherapy that can be given from time to time gradually to reduce the immune system’s response to certain allergens. These injections will be given on a weekly or monthly basis depending on the level of allergies a person experiences. However, this method is quite complex because there are various allergens that exist and the patient's response to the type of allergen is different.

Asthma treatment through lifestyle modification

In addition, apart from knowing the type of medications for asthma treatment, this disease can also be controlled with a healthy lifestyle.

1. Observe what type of allergens or asthma triggers to be avoided in order to reduce the risks of asthma attacks for example cigarette smoke, pet dander, dust, pollen, odours such as detergents or perfumes, or certain medications that show side effects on your health.

2. Practice a healthy lifestyle such as physical activities befitting your health situation. There are many mild exercises you can practise without worrying about getting an asthma attack. Among the recommended activities such as walking, yoga, meditation, or tai-chi.

3. Make sure you have a regular eating schedule and avoid foods causing the production of high levels of mucus because it may exacerbate the inflammation, instead eat a lot of fruits and vegetables.

4. Always monitor your health and seek advice from a doctor. Make sure you attend your appointments at the hospital, strictly adhere to the dosage of the medicine that has been prescribed to you and use the medicine in a correct way as guided by your doctor.

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