Definition: Asthma is a chronic condition where your body reacts to allergens and certain environmental triggers. Asthma is characterized by 2 different responses:
- Hyperresponsiveness- also called the early phase of asthma
- Inflammatory Response- also called the late phase of asthma
Hyperresponsiveness
In hyperresponsiveness the airways of your lungs get smaller when exposed you are to an allergen. While all people's lungs respond in this way to irritant like secondhand smoke, asthma patients have a special response that makes it more difficult to breath.
In people without hyperresponsiveness, the airways relax to help you expel the irritant. In some people with asthma, the airways do not relax and actually get smaller. This narrowing of the airways makes it more difficult to breather. When you use your rescue inhaler, you feel better because the medication relaxes your airways and makes them larger so that air can flow more easily.Hyperresponsiveness occurs soon after exposure to an allergen and is the first part of an asthma attack.
