paddy

Paddy's Science Fair Project

"Asthma and it's Treatments"

Project Summary

Title

Asthma and its Treatments

I have asthma and I wanted to know if everybody’s asthma was like mine.

What did I learn from my project?

I learned that Asthma is a long term disease.

Did I learn anything new?

I learned that there are many types of medications to treat asthma and asthma attacks.

What was the most interesting part of my project?

I learned what was happening inside my body when I was having an asthma attack.

Materials Used

Inhaler
Turbo-Inhaler
Aero-Chamber
Diagram

lungs1.gif (26024 bytes)

Asthma Facts

In Canada asthma affects about 3 million and is responsible for 78,000 hospital admissions. 20 children and 500 adults die each year.
Asthma is not contagious. We are not sure why asthma happens but researchers say asthma can be caused by both inherited and environmental factors.
Estimated 100 million people suffer from asthma
Asthma can occur at any age but is more common in children than adults.
Nearly 1 in 13 school-age children has asthma.

What is Asthma?

Asthma is a chronic or long-term disease, which can affect you for the rest of your life. It causes inflammation of the airways that causes shortness of breath, tightness in the chest, coughing and wheezing. People with asthma often have trouble breathing when they come in contact with triggers. When someone with asthma has an asthma attack, it means that the flow of air is obstructed as it passes in and out of the lungs.

* Mucus clogs up the airways

* The lining of the airways become inflamed

* The muscles around the airways twitch, squeezing the airway.

* Blood vessels expand and swell the airways

Asthma Triggers

Asthma attacks are often brought on by triggers. A trigger is any thing or condition that causes you to have an asthma attack. One person’s triggers can be very different from those of another person with asthma.

Two large categories of triggers are allergens and irritants. Below are the main triggers;

* COLDS OR VIRAL INFECTIONS

This is the most common asthma trigger.

* SMOKE, PERFUMES & HOLDHOLD IRRITANTS

My house is a smoke and a scent free area.

* DUST AND DUST MITES

It is important to keep your bedroom clear of dust. It is an irritant.

* PETS

Pet’s fur can sometimes be a trigger to an attack.

* EXERCISE OR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

This is called exercise-induced asthma. You may need to use an asthma before exercising to prevent an attack.

* MOLDS AND POLLENS

Molds can be found almost anywhere. Molds produce tiny spores. These spores can cause asthma.

* EMOTIONS

Like crying and becoming excited.

Asthma Medications

THE QUICK RELIEVERS

Short acting bronchodilators

THE PREVENTERS OR CONTROLLERS

Anti-inflammatory drugs

Quickly relieves symptoms by relaxing the muscles of the airways

Works over days or weeks. Prevents and reduces inflammation and the build up of mucus.

Inhaled Puffer like Ventolin. It helps prevent an asthma attack quickly which maybe under way.

Inhaled steroid medication like Flovent or Pulmicord

Research Sources:

- Asthma Society of Canada

- Asthma and Allergy Foundation of American

- A Parent’s Guide to Asthma by Merck Frosst

- The Lung Association

Conclusion

It is amazing how common asthma is here in Canada and all around the world. It is a real problem with children. I hope we can find ways to cure asthma rather than just treat it with medication.

Asthma

More On Asthma

Asthma Facts

Asthma Statistics

Paddy

Grade 5

Mr. Murray

St. Bonaventure’s College

St. John’s, NL