Asthma Sourcebook, Fifth Edition provides basic consumer information about the different types of asthma and how they are diagnosed and treated. It includes information about the most common asthma triggers and suggests strategies for minimizing or avoiding them.

Table of Contents

• Preface
• Part I: Asthma Basics
• Chapter 1—What Is Asthma?
• Section 1.1—Asthma: An Overview
• Section 1.2—How the Lungs Work
• Chapter 2—Asthma Causes and Risk Factors
• Section 2.1—What Do We Know about the Causes of Asthma?
• Section 2.2—Mother's Depression a Risk Factor in Childhood Asthma
• Section 2.3—Genetics and Pollution Drive Severity of Asthma Symptoms
• Section 2.4—Infant Gut Microbes Linked to Asthma Risk
• Chapter 3—Do Dietary Factors Contribute to the Development of Asthma?
• Chapter 4—Asthma Triggers
• Section 4.1—Common Allergic and Nonallergic Asthma Triggers
• Section 4.2—Occupational Asthma Triggers
• Section 4.3—Ozone and Asthma
• Section 4.4—Mobile Source Pollution and Asthma
• Chapter 5—Asthma Prevalence, Healthcare Use, and Mortality in the United States
• Chapter 6—Myths and Facts of Asthma
• Part II: Recognizing and Diagnosing Asthma
• Chapter 7—Asthma Attacks
• Section 7.1—What Is an Asthma Attack?
• Section 7.2—Signs of an Asthma Attack
• Section 7.3—What to Do during an Asthma Attack
• Chapter 8—Diagnosing Asthma
• Chapter 9—Tests and Procedures Used to Diagnose Asthma
• Section 9.1—Lung Function Tests
• Section 9.2—Spirometry
• Section 9.3—Nitric Oxide Test
• Section 9.4—Allergy Testing
• Section 9.5—Chest X-Rays
• Chapter 10—Types of Asthma
• Section 10.1—Allergic Asthma
• Section 10.2—Exercise-Induced Asthma
• Section 10.3—Work-Related Asthma (Occupational Asthma)
• Section 10.4—Cough-Variant Asthma
• Section 10.5—Nocturnal Asthma
• Section 10.6—Health Conditions That May Mimic Asthma
• Part III: Medications and Asthma Management
• Chapter 11—Treating Asthma Symptoms
• Section 11.1—Basic Principles for Asthma Control
• Section 11.2—Asthma Medicines: How They Work and How to Take Them
• Section 11.3—Stepwise Approach to Treatment
• Chapter 12—Medications to Treat Asthma
• Chapter 13—Inhaled Corticosteroids
• Section 13.1—Inhaled Corticosteroids: Keep Airways Open
• Section 13.2—Gene Variant Affects Response to Inhaled Corticosteroids
• Chapter 14—Nonsteroidal Long-Term Control Medications
• Section 14.1—Long-Acting Beta Agonists
• Section 14.2—Leukotriene Modifiers
• Section 14.3—Theophylline
• Section 14.4—Anti-Immunoglobulin E (Anti-IgE) Therapy
• Section 14.5—Combination Therapies
• Chapter 15—Asthma Medication Delivery Mechanisms
• Section 15.1—Nebulizers
• Section 15.2—Types of Inhalers
• Section 15.3—How to Use Your Metered-Dose Inhaler
• Section 15.4—How to Use a Peak Flow Meter
• Section 15.5—How to Use Dry Powder Inhalers
• Section 15.6—Spacers and Valved Holding Chambers
• Chapter 16—Adverse Effects Related to the Use of Asthma Medications
• Section 16.1—Don't Let Asthma Medication Side Effects Interfere with Your Asthma Control
• Section 16.2—Osteoporosis
• Section 16.3—Maternal Asthma Medication Use and Birth Defects
• Chapter 17—Immunotherapy and Asthma
• Chapter 18—Alternative and Complementary Asthma Therapies
• Section 18.1—Alternative and Complementary Therapies for Treating Asthma: How Effective Are They?
• Section 18.2—Ephedra
• Section 18.3—Magnesium Supplements for the Treatment of Asthma
• Section 18.4—Traditional Chinese Herbs May Benefit People with Asthma
• Chapter 19—New Developments in Asthma Treatment
• Section 19.1—Bronchial Thermoplasty
• Section 19.2—Controlling Childhood Asthma
• Section 19.3—Role of Vitamin D Supplementation in Asthma Prevention among Pregnant Women
• Section 19.4—Omalizumab Decreases Colds in Children with Asthma
• Chapter 20—Controlled Breathing for Asthma Management
• Chapter 21—Clinical Trials and Research Studies on Asthma
• Section 21.1—Clinical Trials
• Section 21.2—Ongoing Asthma-Related Clinical Trials
• Section 21.3—New Gene Related to Asthma Severity
• Section 21.4—Evaluating New Evidence to Improve Asthma Care and Quality of Life
• Section 21.5—Disease Pathways Lead to Possible New Treatment for Severe Asthma
• Section 21.6—NIH Research Improves Health for People with Asthma
• Chapter 22—The Role of the CDC in Asthma Management
• Part IV: Living with Asthma
• Chapter 23—Working with Your Doctor
• Chapter 24—How to Monitor Your Asthma
• Section 24.1—Monitoring Your Symptoms
• Section 24.2—Keeping a Daily Asthma Diary
• Section 24.3—The Future of Asthma Monitoring
• Chapter 25—Asthma Action Plan
• Chapter 26—Minimizing Indoor Asthma Triggers
• Section 26.1—What Are Indoor Asthma Triggers?
• Section 26.2—Dealing with Cockroaches and Other Pests
• Section 26.3—Minimizing Dust Mites
• Section 26.4—Preventing and Eradicating Mold
• Section 26.5—Dealing with Tobacco Smoke
• Section 26.6—Improving Indoor Air Quality
• Section 26.7—Indoor Nitrogen Dioxide and Asthma Trigger
• Section 26.8—Managing Pets When You Have Asthma
• Chapter 27—Managing Outdoor Asthma Triggers
• Section 27.1—What Are the Health Effects of Outdoor Air Pollution?
• Section 27.2—Dealing with Air Pollution
• Section 27.3—Dealing with Outdoor Nitrogen Dioxide
• Chapter 28—Managing Other Types of Asthma Triggers
• Section 28.1—Food
• Section 28.2—Hurricane or Other Tropical Storm
• Section 28.3—Stress
• Section 28.4—Weather
• Chapter 29—Dealing with Co-Existing Respiratory Conditions
• Section 29.1—Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Section 29.2—Influenza
• Section 29.3—Rhinitis
• Section 29.4—Nasal Polyps
• Chapter 30—Dealing with Other Co-Existing Conditions
• Section 30.1—Allergic Bronchopulmonary Aspergillosis
• Section 30.2—Anaphylaxis
• Section 30.3—Churg Strauss Syndrome
• Section 30.4—Depression
• Section 30.5—Eczema
• Section 30.6—Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease
• Section 30.7—Obesity
• Chapter 31—Lifestyle Modification for Asthma Control
• Chapter 32—Traveling with Asthma
• Chapter 33—Medical Identification Critical for People with Life-Threatening Allergies
• Chapter 34—Prevention Strategies for Asthma
• Chapter 35—Preventing Asthma in Animal Handlers
• Part V: Pediatric Asthma
• Chapter 36—Basic Facts about Asthma in Children
• Chapter 37—Diagnosing Asthma in Children
• Chapter 38—Treating Asthma in Children
• Section 38.1—General Treatment Options for Children with Asthma
• Section 38.2—Do Inhaled Steroids Stunt Your Children's Growth?
• Section 38.3—Managing Your Child's Indoor Environment
• Chapter 39—Asthma Flare-Ups in Children
• Section 39.1—Handling an Asthma Flare-Up
• Section 39.2—Short-Term Additional Treatment Reduces Fall Attacks
• Chapter 40—Dealing with Asthma at School
• Section 40.1—School and Asthma: The Basics
• Section 40.2—How Asthma-Friendly Is Your School
• Section 40.3—Why Schools Should Be Concerned about Asthma
• Section 40.4—Addressing Asthma within a Coordinated School Health Program
• Section 40.5—Asthma Management at School
• Section 40.6—Developing an Asthma Management Program in Your School
• Section 40.7—Controlling Common Asthma Triggers Found in Schools
• Section 40.8—Recognizing Warning Signs of an Asthma Attack
• Section 40.9—Reducing Near-Road Pollution Exposure at Schools
• Section 40.10—Indoor Air Quality in Schools
• Section 40.11—Linking Students to Medical Care
• Chapter 41—Reducing Children's Chances of Asthma
• Chapter 42—Physical Activity and Children with Asthma
• Chapter 43—Parenting a Teen with Asthma
• Chapter 44—Asthma: The Hygiene Hypothesis
• Chapter 45—Infant Exposure to Pet and Pest Allergens May Reduce Asthma Risk
• Chapter 46—Asthma Attacks Declining among U.S. Children
• Part VI: Asthma in Other Special Populations
• Chapter 47—Asthma and Pregnancy
• Chapter 48—Asthma in Older Adults
• Chapter 49—Asthma and Minority Populations
• Section 49.1—Asthma and African Americans
• Section 49.2—Asthma and Asian Americans
• Section 49.3—Asthma and Hispanic Americans
• Section 49.4—Asthma and American Indians and Alaska Natives
• Chapter 50—Asthma Disproportionately Affects Low-Income Populations
• Part VII: Additional Help and Information
• Chapter 51—Glossary of Asthma-Related Terms
• Chapter 52—Directory of Asthma-Related Resources