Chronic Astham
by Bryan Patraw
1. Epidemiology
1.1. Can develop as a child
1.2. May grow out of it as child ages
1.3. 6.8 million cases among children in U.S.
1.4. 18.7 million cases among adults in U.S.
2. Diagnosis
2.1. Physical Exam
2.1.1. Dyspnea
2.1.2. Expiatory Wheezing
2.1.3. Chest Tightness
2.1.4. Non-Productive cough
2.1.5. Prolonged expiration
2.1.6. Tachycardia
2.1.7. Tachypnea
2.2. History of allergies
2.3. Peak Flow Meter
2.4. Recurrent Respiratory infections
3. Treatment
3.1. Step Wise Plan for Asthma
3.1.1. An individualized plan that can be stepped up or down depending on the occurrence and severity of symptoms.
3.2. Lifestyle modification
3.2.1. Avoidance of allergens
3.3. Inahler
3.4. PO Corticosterioids
4. Clinical Presentation
4.1. Non-Productive Cough
4.2. Wheezing
4.3. Chest Tightness
4.4. Hypoxia
4.5. Shortness of Breath
5. Pathophysiology
5.1. Chronic inflammation
5.2. Airway Structure Changes
5.2.1. Thickening of airways
5.2.2. Hypertrophy of smooth Muscles