Treatment for Asthma: An Overview
Triggers and Asthma Treatment
If you react strongly to certain triggers, do everything you can to avoid them. This can reduce your need for medicine to control your asthma. Anti-
allergy medicine and allergy desensitization shots are sometimes useful for people with
allergies who also have asthma.
Medicines for Treating Asthma
Two kinds of medicines are often used for asthma -- those used to relieve acute symptoms and those used on a long-term basis to control asthma.
Fast-acting, inhaled bronchodilators are used to help open up airways to allow air to move more freely.
Anti-inflammatory medicines, such as corticosteroids (also known as steroids), are used every day on a long-term basis to help reduce the swelling of airways. These may be sprays (inhalers) or pills.
If you have mild asthma, you may only have to use a bronchodilator as needed to relieve your symptoms. If you have more severe asthma, you may need both kinds of medicines. It is important to use your medicines exactly as your doctor tells you.
Many people with moderate or severe asthma use a device called a peak flow meter at home to measure lung function. The peak flow meter can help warn of a possible
asthma attack, even before you notice symptoms. You can then stop the attack by taking your medicine right away. The meter can also tell you how well you are responding to medicine.
