💡TL;DR: Restrictive lung disease means your lungs cannot fully expand, so total lung capacity is reduced and each breath is smaller. Causes fall into two broad groups: intrinsic scarring (for example, pulmonary fibrosis) and extrinsic limits outside the lungs (severe obesity, spine deformity, or weak breathing muscles). On testing,

💡TL;DR: Asthma is a chronic condition you manage every day; an acute asthma attack is a sudden flare that needs quick relief. Daily controller medicines and trigger avoidance keep inflammation low, while attacks require rapid bronchodilators and sometimes emergency care. Know your numbers: Green > 80% of personal-best peak

💡TL;DR: Cough‑variant asthma is asthma that presents as a chronic dry cough lasting 6–8+ weeks, often worse at night or with exercise, without wheeze. Diagnosis usually involves ruling out other causes and sometimes a methacholine challenge; treatment uses a rescue inhaler for flares plus a daily inhaled

💡TL;DR: An asthma cough is typically dry, persistent, and triggered at night, with exercise, or in cold air, while a cold cough is usually wet and clears in about 7–10 days with nasal symptoms. Asthma rarely causes fever or body aches and often eases after quick‑relief asthma

💡TL;DR: OTC asthma products can provide brief relief for mild, occasional symptoms when you cannot access a prescription, but they are not substitutes for a rescue inhaler or daily controller therapy. Typical prices: Primatene Mist (epinephrine) inhaler about $30–60, racepinephrine nebulizer vials about $15–40 per box, and

Why Peer Support Matters for Asthma Patients 💡TL;DR: Most asthma support options are free and range from local meetups to 24/7 online communities. In-person clubs provide structure and skills practice, while online forums offer flexibility and fast replies. Trusted programs from the American Lung Association and AAFA make

Flu and Asthma: When to Go to the Hospital 💡TL;DR: If you have asthma and the flu, go to the ER now if breathing is very hard, your lips turn blue/gray, or your rescue inhaler isn’t helping. Follow your Asthma Action Plan: peak flow <50% (red

💡TL;DR: Obesity significantly increases the risk of developing asthma and makes existing asthma harder to control. Nearly 4 in 10 U.S. adults with asthma are obese versus about 1 in 4 without asthma (CDC). Extra weight both compresses the lungs and fuels airway inflammation, so triggers hit harder

💡TL;DR: To tell panic attack vs asthma fast, look for wheeze or cough and whether rescue medicine helps. Relief with a rescue inhaler or nebulized bronchodilator points to asthma, while a racing heart, tingling, and relief with slow exhale breathing point to panic. About 25 million people in the