Asthma ranks as one of the most crippling conditions owing to its adverse effects on those it afflicts. Those with this condition complain of obstructed airways that make the whole breathing process a hard nut to crack. Even worse are reports by patients of their airways being inflamed, a state of affairs that causes them great distress. These symptoms can be triggered at any moment by a wide range of factors that lead the individual in question to experience significant pain and experience difficulty when attempting to breathe during this intricate period. Chest tightness, coughing and chest tightness soon follows, proving the bane of such an individual’s life (Sheen, 2011). Moreover, the lives of such individuals are significantly affected by the condition since they are always at risk of experiencing an attack at any given moment. It’s vital to acknowledge that the condition can either be occupational or stem from an individual’s childhood and since it has no cure, the only viable option is attempting to manage it. Immunologists and allergist have over the years spent countless hours in medical labs trying to develop medication to manage the condition. The following are some popular asthma management medication together with a critical analysis of the same.
There are a plethora of factors that are considered when deciding which asthma medication best suits a patient. Physicians put the symptoms, age and possible triggers into consideration before determining which medication would best suit the individual. The idea behind using these medications is to reduce the inflammation allowing the subject to breathe usually without any symptoms of the condition. Long-term medications are the most common in the treatment of this condition and are ingested on a daily basis to prevent asthma symptoms from manifesting themselves. These may include inhaled corticosteroids, leukotriene modifiers, beta agonists, combination inhalers and theophylline (Arshad and Babu, 2009). These medications are in demand due to the speed at which they deal with the said affliction. Others, such as the quick-relief medications, are necessarily a quick fix solution meant to bring relief to asthma symptoms that may have manifested themselves at a given time. They are also used by asthmatic individuals who would want to engage physically straining activities such as exercise sessions (Soni, 2016). Oral corticosteroids and ipratropium are examples of quick-relief medications that can be put to use in dealing with this particular condition (Asthma sourcebook, n.d.). Furthermore, allergy medications are commonly used in the management of asthma, with Xolair and immunotherapy the most common options.
A primary concern among most asthma patients are the exorbitant prices that they are confronted with when attempting to find a long-term solution for their condition. The pricy nature of these medicines locks out most of those who would have benefited greatly from these treatment options with a chance to manage their condition (O’Byrne and Thomson, 2011). Medicines are meant to assist those in distress, but in this particular case, it seems as though the only entity benefitting from this arrangement are large pharmaceutical companies. Moreover, medications such as albuterol are notorious for failing to provide remedies for asthma patients. It has been noted, and with great concern, that it does not decongest the airways, which points to a flaw in its development.
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