Mechanisms of disease asthma
The word asthma in Greek means to be breathless.
Responsible bronchial obstruction in asthma is the result of several changes that will reduce the size of the airways:
- Bronchial muscle contracts: the bronchoconstriction;
- The wall of the bronchus thickens: it is swelling;
- The inner wall of the bronchus (mucosa) secretes mucus important: it hypersecretion.
Edema and hypersecretion reflect a change in bronchial inflammation called bronchi.
This inflammation is often not felt by the patient but is nevertheless the depths of the disease that is evolving into asthma chronicity.
When an aggressor agent is inhaled by a subject hyperreactive, it is in contact with the cells of the respiratory tree.
Cells regulate two ways:
* Immediate reactions: cells secrete substances that will cause the closure of the bronchi as if they wanted to protect the arrival of other stressors. This is asthma that is a translation of the immediate cellular responses, breathing becomes difficult, and wheezing patient feels discomfort or tightness in the chest.
* Delayed reactions: the cells will secrete substances that attract other blood cells that play a role in inflammation, in an attempt to destroy on-site agent aggressor. These are phenomena which constitute and maintain the airway inflammation that exist even outside of crisis and the need to treat to prevent occurrence of new crises