Why Inhalers Work Best For Asthma
Asthma is a chronic condition where the lungs tend to become inflamed and the airways become reversibly narrowed. The airway constriction causes shortness of breath, chest tightness, coughing, occasional chest pains, and wheezing. Wheezing, though, is misperceived to be present in all asthma attacks. The truth is that wheezing only occurs in mild to acute asthma. In severe cases of asthma, airflow may be so impaired that wheezing can no longer be heard.
Asthma has a steady state. In this steady state, the asthmatic can continue living a normal life. Occasional nighttime coughing may occur, but nothing that an inhaler cannot take care of. But asthma, when left unchecked, gets worse without being known. The asthmatic may feel perfectly fine without realizing that the airways are starting to constrict; inhaling airborne irritants speeds up the process of asthma exacerbation.
Asthma triggers include, but are not limited to, smoke, dust, pollen, strong odors, fumes, and molds. Most of these can be avoided. But there will be a time that exposure to them is inevitable. This brings about an asthma attack, wherein the symptoms are worse than those in its steady state. Asthma attacks are generally characterized by wheezing.
Asthma attacks occur when the airways become narrowed to reject the inhaled irritant. To relieve asthma episodes, inhalers are used for almost immediate results. These inhalers contain and deliver fast-acting bronchodilators, which are substances that relax and widen the airways. The words bronchi refer to the airways while dilate means to widen. In short, bronchodilators help normalize breathing, and they do it fast.
Fast-acting bronchodilators are often delivered as aerosol, powder, or mist. They are more popular in those forms than pills. This is because inhaling the medication allows it to target the lungs directly. Even hospitals use bronchodilator-based nebulizers to ease the symptoms of severe asthma attacks. For this reason, inhalers are often referred to as the asthmatics best friend.