What is Asthma?
Asthma is a disease of the airways and lungs. When something
happens that sets off or triggers an asthma attack, your airways
become inflamed and swollen, the muscles around your airways
tighten, and it becomes hard to breathe. In addition, mucus clogs up
the airways.1,2 The result could range from a mild cough or wheeze to
difficulty breathing. In some cases, breathing may be so difficult that
the asthma attack becomes life-threatening.
References:
1. American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology. Topic of the Month: May 2005: Do You Have Good Asthma Control? Available at: http://www.aaaai.org/patients/topicofthemonth/0505/. Accessed January 2, 2009.
2. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). You Can Control Your Asthma. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/asthma/faqs.htm. Accessed November 7, 2008.