How to Treat Asthmatic Patients

Asthma affects men, women and children of all ages. It is marked by inflammation and tightening, also called constriction, of the airways. Episodes of asthmatic symptoms are referred to as asthma attacks and can be life-threatening. If you are caring for someone with asthma or you have a loved one who has been diagnosed with the condition, it's a good idea to learn how it's treated.

Instructions

• 1

  Take an asthmatic patient to a doctor to obtain the prescriptions he may need. Depending on his unique case, he may need short-term medications, such as rescue inhalers, long-term medications to prevent asthma symptom episodes and allergy medicines.

• 2

  Assist the patient with using her rescue inhaler if she has an asthma attack. She'll need to inhale puffs of this medicine through her mouth. According to the UC Davis Health System (see Reference 1), rescue inhalers worker to relax constricted airways quickly, allowing the patient to breathe easier. Some examples of rescue medications are albuterol (Ventolin HFA) and pirbuterol acetate (Maxair).

• 3

  Make the asthmatic patient take his long-term asthma management medications daily, as prescribed by his doctor. These medications do not stop asthma attacks already in progress, but they do minimize or prevent flare-ups of asthma symptoms. According to the Mayo Clinic (see Reference 2), examples of long-term management medications include fluticasone (Flovent), montelukast (Singulair) and salmeterol (Severent).

• 4

  Remind the asthmatic patient to take any allergy medication her doctor has prescribed. Depending on her doctor's orders, she may take allergy medication daily or whenever she is likely to be exposed to an allergen. Allergy symptoms can trigger asthma flare-ups.

• 5

  Call an ambulance to take a patient to the emergency room if he's used a rescue inhaler but his asthma attack symptoms have not improved or have worsened.