4 - Kuwait Oil Company

Understanding AsthmaAsthma is a chronic lung diseasethat inflames and narrows theairways. Asthma causes recurringperiods of wheezing (a whistlingsound when you breathe), chesttightness, shortness of breath, andcoughing. The coughing oftenoccurs at night or early in themorning.Asthma affects people of all ages,but it most often starts duringchildhood. Recent reports indicatethat an estimated 15 percent of theKuwaiti population, an equivalentof 450,000 citizens and residents,suffer from asthma.OverviewTo understand asthma, it helps toknow how the airways work. Theairways are tubes that carry airinto and out of your lungs. Peoplewho have asthma have inflamedairways. This makes them swollenand very sensitive. They tend toreact strongly to certain inhaledsubstances.When the airways react, themuscles around them tighten.This narrows the airways, causingless air to flow into the lungs.The swelling also can worsen,making the airways even narrower.Cells in the airways might makemore mucus than usual. Mucusis a sticky, thick liquid that canfurther narrow the airways. Thischain reaction can result in asthmasymptoms, which can happen eachtime the airways are inflamed.AsthmaFigure A shows the location of the lungs and airways in the body. Figure Bshows a cross-section of a normal airway. Figure C shows a cross-sectionof an airway during asthma symptoms.Sometimes asthma symptoms aremild and go away on their own orafter minimal treatment with asthmamedicine. Other times, symptomscontinue to get worse. Whensymptoms get more intense or moresymptoms occur, you're having anasthma attack. Asthma attacks alsoare called flareups or exacerbations.Treating symptoms when you firstnotice them is important. This willhelp prevent the symptoms fromworsening and causing a severeasthma attack. Severe asthmaattacks may require emergencycare, and they can be fatal.What Causes Asthma?The exact cause of asthma isn'tknown; however, researchers thinksome genetic and environmentalfactors interact to cause asthma,most often early in life. Thesefactors include:• An inherited tendency to developallergies, called atopy• Parents who have asthma• Certain respiratory infectionsduring childhood• Contact with some airborneallergens or exposure to someviral infections in infancy orin early childhood when theimmune system is developingIf asthma or atopy runs in yourfamily, exposure to irritants (forexample, tobacco smoke) mightmake your airways more reactive tosubstances in the air.Some factorsmight be more likely to causeasthma in certain people than inothers. Researchers continue toexplore what causes asthma.Who Is at Risk for Asthma?Asthma affects people of all ages,but it most often starts during44October - December 2012