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| Home > More About Asthma > Asthma Symptoms |
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What happens to you when your asthma is not under control? A whistling sound that you make when you breathe? A tight grip around your chest? Most patients with asthma have one or more of these common asthma symptoms:
- Wheezing. A whistling sound that's usually heard when you breathe out.
- Coughing. A cough or hack that may not go away and often occurs at night or is worse at night.
- Chest tightness. Feels like a rope being tightened around your chest.
- Shortness of breath. Feels like you're trying to breathe through a straw—or worse, like you can't catch your breath at all. Breathing out is especially tough.
These symptoms may occur if you don't follow your asthma treatment plan as provided by your healthcare professional (and sometimes even if you do), or when you come into contact with triggers that set off your asthma symptoms or attacks. Here are the two main things that happen deep within the airways of your lungs when you have asthma symptoms that may lead to an attack:
- Airway constriction. The muscles around the airways in the lungs squeeze together or tighten. This tightening narrows the airways and is often called "bronchoconstriction," and it can make it hard for you to breathe the air in or out of your lungs.
- Airway inflammation. The airways of the lungs are often swollen and irritated if you have asthma, and they become more swollen and irritated when an attack begins. Your healthcare professional may refer to this swelling and irritation as "inflammation." Inflammation can reduce the amount of air that you can take in or breathe out of your lungs. In some people with asthma, the mucus glands in the airways produce excessive, thick mucus, further obstructing the airways.
The bottom line on asthma is this: Even if you don't notice it, it's always with you. Your airways are inflamed whether you have symptoms or not. That's why it's so important to treat asthma every day—even when you're feeling fine—because there is
increasing evidence that, if left untreated, asthma can cause a long-term loss of lung function.
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 Do I Have Asthma? |
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If you or someone you care about has ever wondered if you have asthma, take a first step with the Do I Have Asthma? Quiz. |
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