In order to develop a solid Asthma Treatment Plan, we first need to understand what asthma is. Asthma is a chronic, inflammatory lung disease in which your airways narrow and swell and produce extra mucus. This can make breathing difficult and triggers coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath.

Asthma signs and symptoms include:

• Shortness of breath
• Chest tightness or pain
• Trouble sleeping caused by shortness of breath, coughing or wheezing
• A whistling or wheezing sound when exhaling (wheezing is a common sign of asthma in children)
• Coughing or wheezing attacks that are worsened by a respiratory virus, such as a cold or the flu
• Fatigue

At Allergy & Asthma Specialists, we first begin performing a detailed history and physical examination and testing including, pulmonary function tests (PFTs), if it is safe to do so considering Covid-19, to determine how effectively your lungs are working, and rule out any other conditions that may mimic asthma symptoms, including respiratory infections and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

The first step to improving your asthma and your quality of life is to make an appointment to see us. Our providers will work with you to investigate your symptoms, determine a diagnosis, help you build a plan to control your symptoms.

If you receive an asthma diagnosis, the next phase is identifying your trigger(s). If allergic asthma is suspected, allergy skin testing can provide information on allergens to which you have a sensitivity. If you do have any allergic reactions, our specialists will work with you to see if that particular allergen could be related to your asthma symptoms.

While the majority of asthma patients have allergic asthma, our specialists will consult with nonallergic asthma sufferers to determine what lifestyle factors may be the behind their asthma.

Regardless of triggers, we will get a personalized treatment strategy in place for you. Avoiding/removing environmental factors that aggravate your asthma can make a big impact on your respiratory health. When this alone does not put a stop to your asthma, a variety of medications have proven successful at managing symptoms.

Allergen desensitization through immunotherapy (allergy shots) or cluster immunotherapy, a faster version on immunotherapy, can greatly reduce the symptoms of allergic asthma. Recently, several new medications, known collectively as “biologics,” have been approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe asthma. Biologic therapies are used for patients who continue to have symptoms despite use of standard daily controller medications. Symptoms of poorly controlled asthma include frequent coughing, wheezing, or shortness of breath; waking up at night with difficulty breathing; requiring a fast-acting reliever medication, such as albuterol, several times a day or week; and recurrent hospital admissions, emergency room visits, or need for oral steroids for exacerbations.

At Allergy & Asthma Specialists, we are asthma experts. Let us put a treatment plan in place so you can get your asthma symptoms under control and get back to normal life! Call us today at 219-513-8923!