What Causes Asthma?

Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease that causes airway inflammation and makes it difficult to get enough oxygen to support good health. Asthma affects people of all ages and triggers symptoms ranging from mild and occasional to severe and life-threatening.

At Stat Care Pulmonary and Sleep, we provide expert care for asthma and other lung diseases, including in-office lung function testing.

Our pulmonary specialists, Ashok Tyagi, DO, CPE, and Himanshu Chandarana, MD, design individual treatment plans to protect lung health and prevent frequent asthma attacks.

An overview of what causes asthma

Asthma has many triggers, but the root cause of the disease isn’t well understood. Several known factors contribute to asthma-related airway inflammation, including:

Allergies

Environmental allergens play a role in asthma. If you have allergies, coming into contact with pollen, dust, mold, and other allergens can trigger an asthma attack.

Upper respiratory infections

Children who develop viral respiratory infections can be at higher risk for asthma later in life.

Obesity

Being overweight or obese puts increased pressure on your respiratory system, which can interfere with breathing. Obesity can also cause low-grade inflammation throughout the body, including in your airways, and make you more susceptible to asthma flare-ups.

Smoking

Cigarette smoke irritates the airways, increasing the likelihood of chronic airway inflammation. Smoking cigarettes and being exposed to secondhand smoke are known risk factors for asthma, lung cancer, and other diseases.

Diagnostic tests for asthma

Lung function testing is available at Stat Care Pulmonary and Sleep to confirm asthma and rule out other conditions. Schedule testing if you have frequent or severe asthma symptoms like:

• Wheezing
• Shortness of breath
• Persistent cough
• Chest pain

Asthma symptoms can also disrupt your sleep cycle, which can cause fatigue, poor mental clarity, and irritability.

We offer noninvasive tests like spirometry that measure how much air your lungs can take in with each breath and how quickly they can push the air out. You may also need allergy testing to identify which substances in your environment cause an asthma attack.

Treatment options to manage asthma

If you have asthma triggered by allergies, our providers can create a plan to help you avoid known allergens. Your plan may include lifestyle modifications and diet changes to reduce the frequency of asthma attacks.

Short-acting, inhaled medications are available to reduce inflammation in your airways during an attack. Your physician can also prescribe long-acting daily medications to prevent further asthma complications.

In the event of a severe asthma attack, you may need in-office breathing treatments to open your airways and ensure your body gets the oxygen it needs to function optimally.

During your initial consultation, we discuss the best course of treatment to keep your asthma under control. We also monitor your respiratory health during follow-up visits to ensure you stay active and healthy.

Call Stat Care Pulmonary and Sleep in St. Petersburg, Florida, today to schedule lung function testing for asthma symptoms.