Asthma Support Group
Asthma is a disease of the human respiratory system where the airways narrow, often in response to a "trigger" such as exposure to an allergen, cold air, exercise, or emotional stress. This airway narrowing causes symptoms such as wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, and coughing, which respond to bronchodilators.
I know this might sound stupid, but are asthma and reactive airway disease the same thing? My pulmonary doctor told me I had asthma back in October but when I was treated at the ER in January they wrote "Reactive Airway Disease:Wheezing" on my discharge papers.
I was just wondering. thanks.
tom
btw, I did not hear any wheezing. I was coughing and could not catch my breath. I guess they can hear it better with a stethoscope.
tom
I was just wondering. thanks.
tom
btw, I did not hear any wheezing. I was coughing and could not catch my breath. I guess they can hear it better with a stethoscope.
tom
The only other purpose for this labeling issue is denial of coverage by insurance companies. For example, many 9/11 workers were labeled as having "reactive airway disease" - at which time this term really started coming into vogue in the popular vernacular beyond acemdic medical circles - as opposed to asthma giving companies an opportunity to deny coverage, especially as concerns certain expensive prescription items.
In reality, it makes no difference in terms of the disease progression or treatment. A horse is a horse of course, of course...