Asthma Attacks

Asthma attacks are very frightening for the patient, and often very stressful for those that are unable to help their friend or family member struggle to breathe. An asthma attack occurs when the person with asthma is exposed to an asthma trigger. A trigger can be anything in the environment that makes the already sensitive lining of the air passages become even more inflamed. Examples of some common asthma triggers are:

• Pets or pet hair or dander
• Grass, flowers or certain plants
• Pollution, fumes, exhausts or other chemicals
• Anything scented, such as air fresheners, perfume, hairspray
• Fabrics, carpets or stuffed toys

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The person with asthma may or may not be aware that a particular chemical or item will become an asthma trigger. Depending on the severity of the asthma attack, the trigger can cause an increased swelling that will lead to wheezing and difficulty breathing, or it can lead to a complete restriction of the air passages that can lead to blacking out or even death in extreme attacks.

How Asthma Attacks Happen

The breathing and air passages of a person without asthma are like hollow tubes. The tubes are actually ringed with muscles that naturally expand and contract to control the amount of air in and out. The walls of the air passage are very thin and most of the tube is just hollow space.

A person with asthma has a thick layer of inflamed tissue inside the tube or air passage most or all of the time. Instead of just a hollow tube, their airways look more like a tube lined with cotton. This constant irritation of the lining of the air passages makes them extremely sensitive to irritants that may be in the air. When an irritant or trigger is inhaled, the already swollen passages swell even further, restricting the airflow through the tubes. When this happens, the person naturally begins to panic or struggle to breathe. This increased tension causes the muscles that surround the air passages to contract, restricting even further the amount of air that can be passed through. Usually, people with asthma indicate that they have little trouble breathing in initially, but they cannot seem to expel air out of their lungs during the attack.

Without any medications the individual cannot stop the cycle of muscle contraction in the throat caused by the panic and the increased irritation and swelling. In addition the swelling tissue in the passages begins to produce mucus that can form plugs in the airways, further complicating the breathing process.

During an asthma attack the person may experience wheezing, coughing and dizziness. Some people will have long periods of time before the attack gets severe, whereas others will react very quickly after being exposed to the trigger.