It is a chronic disease of the large and medium-sized airways of the lungs, which are called bronchi. It consists of inflammation due to irritation of the bronchial tubes, which in an asthmatic attack, can go into spasms and the membranes that cover them internally become red and inflamed and an excessive amount of mucus is also produced.
The swelling, coupled with the extra mucus, causes shortness of breath, as the chest expands violently in an effort to take in air and the diaphragm pushes out. This effort is translated into a respiratory noise that is called fatigue.
Under normal conditions, the bronchi are soft and dilated holders walls membranes colored pink. Inside the healthy bronchi, there are the cilia, which look like tiny hairs, which are in motion, which are responsible for moving mucus. In this way, the air enters and leaves without producing any noise.
It has been discovered that this disease is caused by an allergic reaction, which in turn is produced by a genetic predisposition of the individual to environmental exposure. This means that asthma is a reaction to a stimulus, that is, when the person inhales mites, pollens, molds, tobacco smoke, among other things that can cause allergic reactions, they suffer from irritation and inflammation of their respiratory tract, a process that translates as asthma.
In addition, there are other elements that can trigger an asthmatic attack, such as cold air, physical exercise, strong emotions (such as anger or fear) and even medications such as aspirin and beta-blockers.
Unlike most allergies, which have a variety of symptoms, asthma has symptoms that are based on respiratory failure (which causes bluish lips and drowsiness), fatigue, cough and muscle tension in areas around the neck and the ribs, due to the effort they exert to take in air.
When a person exhibits asthma symptoms, they are said to be experiencing an asthmatic attack, where a distortion of breathing occurs. The normal thing is that a person fulfills his process of aspiration of air and once finished, the expiration automatically begins. Under an asthmatic attack, expiration is not so automatic, since the obstructed airways block the air outflow, which causes the person to breathe as much as possible from their lungs.
Asthma is not communicable, but despite this its frequency is very common, especially in children. It is estimated that 235 million people have asthma in the world.
