This time of the year is certainly rough for many folks. Cold and flu season isn’t yet over, asthma flare-ups are common, and allergies are triggered by all sorts of things.
If you’re experiencing shortness of breath, it could be attributed to any of these factors. However, it could also be something else entirely. Regardless of the culprit, if you’re having trouble breathing, it’s definitely time to see your doctor.
Drugs designed to treat colds and flu may target several symptoms, but swelling of your airways isn’t one of them. The same is true of most allergy medicine. It may help ease other symptoms and lessen the severity of breathing problems, but it likely won’t solve them outright.
Whether triggered by a bronchial infection or allergies, conditions that cause difficulty breathing, especially asthma, typically require prescription treatments. And if you have eosinophilic asthma, it may not be the result of allergies or a virus at all.
Once upon a time, asthma was thought of as a single condition. Now, doctors are realizing that there are different subtypes.
Though eosinophilic asthma is somewhat rare, it differs from typical childhood asthma in several ways. For one thing, the onset tends to happen later in life – from age 35 to 50. It is also often much more severe since it causes swelling throughout your entire respiratory system.
Symptoms differ as well, as shortness of breath is more common than the wheezing typically associated with asthma.
Treatment of eosinophilic asthma can be challenging as well, as it doesn’t tend to respond well to inhaled corticosteroids. Often oral corticosteroids or leukotriene modifiers may be prescribed.
And as for what causes eosinophilic asthma, no one’s quite sure just yet.
Considering the array of ailments spring brings, it’s often common to write off shortness of breath as being attributed to them. But it may be more serious than you think.
While you may not think you have asthma, it could be a new development. Difficulty breathing isn’t just a side effect of spring – it’s a sign that you should see your doctor.
