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Breastfeeding protects against asthma up to six years of age

(Medical Xpress) -- Research by the University of Otago in Christchurch and Wellington has shown that breastfeeding of infants has a clear protective effect against children developing asthma or wheezing up to six years of ...

Medicine & Health / Health

created Feb 10, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Drinking large amounts of soft drinks associated with asthma and COPD

A new study published in the journal Respirology reveals that a high level of soft drink consumption is associated with asthma and/or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Medicine & Health / Health

created Feb 07, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Combined asthma medication therapy shown to reduce attacks

A Henry Ford Hospital study has found that using two types of common asthma medications in combination reduces severe asthma attacks.

Medicine & Health / Diseases

created Feb 06, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Asthma rate and costs from traffic-related air pollution are much higher than once believed

A research team led by University of Massachusetts Amherst resource economist Sylvia Brandt, with colleagues in California and Switzerland, have revised the cost burden sharply upward for childhood asthma and for the first ...

Medicine & Health / Health

created Jan 26, 2012 | popularity 1 / 5 (1) | comments 3

Acid reflux drug does not improve asthma in children

Children without symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux whose asthma was being poorly controlled with anti-inflammatory treatment did not have an improvement in symptoms or lung function with the added treatment of the proton ...

Medicine & Health / Diseases

created Jan 24, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Multiple medicines may double fall rate for young and middle aged

(Medical Xpress) -- Working-age adults who take combinations of prescription medication may be doubling their risk of serious falls at home according to research from The University of Auckland.

Medicine & Health / Medications

created Jan 23, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Accelerated infant growth increases risk of future asthma symptoms in children

Accelerated growth in the first three months of life, but not fetal growth, is associated with an increased risk of asthma symptoms in young children, according to a new study from The Generation R Study Group at Erasmus ...

Medicine & Health / Diseases

created Jan 20, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Wood-burning stoves - harmful or safe?

Wood-burning stoves are a popular source of heating in many countries. However in recent years there has been much debate about the potential negative health effects associated with wood smoke. A Norwegian researcher has ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jan 17, 2012 | popularity 2.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Increased risk of developing asthma by age of 3 after cesarean section

A new study supports previous findings that children delivered by cesarean section have an increased risk of developing asthma. The study from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) suggests that children delivered ...

Medicine & Health / Diseases

created Jan 10, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

A large subgroup of mild-to-moderate asthma is persistently non-eosinophilic

A large percentage of patients with mild-to-moderate asthma have persistently non-eosinophilic disease which may not respond to currently available anti-inflammatory treatments, according to a new study.

Medicine & Health / Diseases

created Jan 06, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Pinpointing asthma susceptibility in Japanese adults

A team of geneticists has identified five specific gene regions associated with asthma susceptibility among Japanese adults. Mayumi Tamari of the RIKEN Center for Genomic Medicine, Yokohama, led the research.

Medicine & Health / Genetics

created Dec 22, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

New US anti-pollution standards draw industry fire

US health campaigners Wednesday hailed the announcement of new anti-pollution standards for American manufacturers, but industry leaders condemned the rules for being costly and overly aggressive.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Dec 21, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 31

Inhaled glucocorticoids during pregnancy and offspring pediatric diseases

Inhaled glucocorticoids for the treatment of asthma during pregnancy are not associated with an increased risk of most diseases in offspring, but may be a risk factor for endocrine and metabolic disturbances, according to ...

Medicine & Health / Health

created Dec 16, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Researchers find link between pulmonary inflammation, diesel exhaust, house dust

A study conducted by researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) has found that diesel exhaust particulates (DEP) and house dust extract (HDE) causes pulmonary inflammation that aggravates asthma. The study ...

Medicine & Health / Health

created Dec 14, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Improved medication use could reduce severe asthma attacks

Researchers at Henry Ford Hospital have found that one-quarter of severe asthma attacks could be prevented if only patients consistently took their medication as prescribed.

Medicine & Health / Diseases

created Dec 12, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Asthma

Asthma is a chronic inflammation of the lungs in which the airways (bronchi) are reversibly narrowed. Asthma affects 7% of the population, and 300 million worldwide. During attacks (exacerbations), the smooth muscle cells in the bronchi constrict, and the airways become inflamed and swollen. Breathing becomes difficult, and asthma causes 4,000 deaths a year in the U.S. Attacks can be prevented by avoiding triggering factors and by drug treatment. Drugs are used for acute attacks, commonly inhaled β2-agonists. In more serious cases, drugs are used for long-term prevention, starting with inhaled corticosteroids, and then long-acting β2-agonists if necessary. Leukotriene antagonists are less effective than corticosteroids but have no side effects. Monoclonal antibodies such as mepolizumab and omalizumab are sometimes effective. Prognosis is good with treatment.

In contrast to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and chronic bronchitis, the inflammation of asthma is reversible. In contrast to emphysema, asthma affects the bronchi, not the alveoli.

The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute defines asthma as a common chronic disorder of the airways characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, airflow obstruction, bronchial hyperresponsiveness (bronchospasm), and an underlying inflammation.

Public attention in the developed world has recently focused on asthma because of its rapidly increasing prevalence, affecting up to one in four urban children.

For more information about Asthma, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.