Bronchial asthma:

Definition:

Defined as a disorder characterised by chronic airflow inflammation and increased airway responsiveness.

Causes:
One of the strongest risk factors for asthma is a combination of genetic tendency and exposure to allergens / irritants.

The allergens or irritants form a large group and some of the common ones are mentioned here:

• Pollen and moulds.
• House dust mites.
• Air pollution.
• Pet dander.
• Tobacco smoke.
• Chemical irritants in the workplace.
• Strong perfumes

Apart from allergens/irritants, there are other things that can trigger an asthmatic attack:

• Chilly air.
• Intense emotions like anger, fear, etc.
• Physical exercise (known as Exercise-induced Asthma, this is triggered by rigorous physical exercise).
• Certain drugs like aspirin, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), Beta-blockers, etc.
• Viral infections.
• Certain foods
• Change in weather.
• Hormonal changes such as those occurring in pregnancy, menopause, thyroid disorders, etc.
• Obesity.
• Gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) – the reflux of the acid from the stomach into the food pipe (esophagus) can trigger asthma in sensitive individuals.
• Heredity.

Symptoms:

There are certain patterns that can be commonly seen such as:

• Perennial or seasonal asthma.
• Continuous or intermittent asthma.
• Daytime or nighttime asthma.

The symptoms that are seen amongst the patients can have any combination from the following set:

• Cough – this is mostly dry cough (not accompanied by phlegm).
• Breathlessness / dyspnoea.
• Wheezing (wheeze) – An audible whistling when exhaling
• Chest tightness or pain.
• Difficulty in lying down due to the breathlessness/dyspnoea.
• Bouts of coughing or wheezing (wheeze) that are worsened by a respiratory virus such as a cold or the flu.
• Restless sleep, tired feeling on waking.
• Easily getting tired with activities that normally would not affect anyone so much.
• Tightening of neck muscles, rapidity of breathing.
• Difficulty in talking at times.
• Excessive sweating (especially during an acute asthma attack).

The symptoms of asthma change over time in most people and these must be tracked regularly. The patient must periodically visit his physician to get his condition evaluated.

The physician evaluates asthma based on certain key features and classifies them into:

• Mild intermittent asthma- Mild symptoms up to two days a week and up to two nights a month
• Mild persistent asthma- Symptoms more than twice a week, but no more than once in a single day
• Moderate persistent asthma- Symptoms once a day and more than one night a week
• Severe persistent asthma- Symptoms throughout the day on most days and frequently at night

It must be noted that first three types of asthma (respiratory allergy / wheeze) respond very well to Homeopathy; however in the last type the treatment tends to be more palliative in nature.

Diagnosis:

• Spirometry (Lung function tests).
• Peak flow rate.
• X-ray chest.

Some other diagnostic tests can also be done to confirm asthma; however these are not very commonly performed. These include:

• Methacholine bronchial challenge.
• Nitric oxide test.

In case of children, it can be hard to differentiate asthma from a wheezy bronchitis or pneumonia and the diagnosis should be very carefully established.

Suggestion about homeopathic Treatment:

Breathe easy with Homeopathy.Reduced frequency and severity of attacks, shorter duration of the attacks and overall improved resistance are some of the prime benefits of homeopathic treatment as reported by most of our patients.

It must be borne in mind that the treatment period may vary from case to case and depends on certain factors such as the age of patient, duration of the illness, frequency and severity of complaints, medication taken in the past, etc. Presence of other systemic illnesses in the patient may prolong the duration of treatment.

An interesting aspect about the homeopathic treatment is that the drugs are not the same for all people with asthma. Case taking is done in-depth and the remedy may vary from person to person since it depends on many factors, few of which are as follows:

• The triggers of the asthmatic attack.
• Seasonal worsening of the illness.
• Effect of moon phases (full moon, new moon, etc.) on the condition.
• Time of the day when the asthma is better or worse
  Whether condition is better or worse from lying down, sitting, walking, stooping, etc.
• The effect of emotions, foods, etc. on the attack.

After taking all these points (and many more) into consideration, the physician arrives at a constitutional remedy that heals the condition from the root level without causing any suppression.

In cases that are not very severe, Homeopathy can also help to reduce the need for conventional medications as well as reduce their dosage. There is reduced dependency on bronchodilators and steroid inhalers with continued homeopathic treatment.

People who regularly use steroid inhalers (and large doses of the same for a long time) must watch out for side-effects of the same such as:

• Irritability, mood swings, aggression, depression and insomnia.
• Osteoporosis.
• Stunted growth in children.
• Steroid psychosis in severe cases.
• Oral thrush or candidiasis.

In severe cases of asthma, the role of homeopathic medications is largely palliative. At any rate, homeopathy is strongly suggested for anyone who asthma, whatever is the stage of the illness.