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Chronic asthma afflicts millions of Americans, both children, and adults, and the numbers are growing every year. Asthma is a complex affliction. An underdiagnosed problem, asthma can be severe and deadly if overlooked or inadequately treated. When you are under the care of the doctors of osteopathy at Swetech Medical Center, you will receive regular treatment and support to reduce the number of emergency room visits for attacks and minimize the danger of this condition.
What is Chronic
Asthma is a chronic inflammation of the airways. This respiratory disorder can affect people of all ages. In a person with asthma, the bronchial tubes swell more than usual and the muscles around the airways can tighten, making airways narrower and making it difficult for air to move in and out of the lungs. These effects lead to telltale symptoms like wheezing, shortness of breath, tightness in the chest, and coughing.
There are two types of asthma:
- Allergic: Symptoms are usually a reaction to inhaling a substance like pollen, mold, dust mites, wheat, or dairy.
- Non-allergic: Attacks can be triggered by anything from fatigue to stress, medication to damp environments.
Asthma does not have a cure, but it can be controlled.
What is essential is getting an accurate diagnosis. Wheezing and other breathing issues can be an indication of other conditions and diseases, some life-threatening and others less severe, including bronchitis, pneumonia, acid reflux, heart failure, lung cancer, or pulmonary embolism.
How Osteopathy Can Help with
Getting a diagnosis of asthma can be a relief for patients who have suspected they suffer from this condition. However, simply being sent home with a prescription for a steroid inhaler is not enough to address the totality of this disease.
Doctors of osteopathy are concerned with how asthma affects the whole body, how functions of the human body are linked, and what can be done to lower the side effects and complications of this disease. By focusing on all aspects of breathing, including the muscles, diaphragm, spine, and ribs, an osteopath gently works with the body’s structure to improve the mechanics of breathing:
- Free restrictions of the chest and ribs
- Relax respiratory muscles
- Improve lymphatic drainage from the air passages and lungs
- Enhance blood supply to the chest
- Practice breathing exercises
- Identify and avoid aggravating factors
- Correct posture
Osteopathy does not replace conventional treatment with hands-on care alone. Improving the breathing mechanism is important but anti-inflammatory medication and inhalers are still critical measures of care in the treatment of chronic asthma. The overall goal is to deliver care that will decrease the patient’s frequency of attacks and dependency on medication and help them better cope with breathing restrictions.
Get Care and Treatment in Clinton
At Swetech Medical Center, our doctors of osteopathic medicine work to accurately diagnose chronic asthma and develop treatment plans that ensure our patients are able to maintain a full life even with this health restriction. Consistent care, regular checkups, proper exercise and diet, and avoidance of triggers can help reduce the negative side effects and encourage the body’s natural tendency to self-heal. Together with your doctor, you can create an action plan that identifies the best way to handle each type of attack, how to manage asthma when sick, when to call a doctor, or when to visit the emergency room.
Contact us today to discuss any respiratory issues you are experiencing or to begin osteopathic treatment for chronic asthma. Visit our urgent care in Clinton Township for immediate medical attention.
