Harsh Asthma triggered by chest cold or dogs?
Could this asthma flare have been triggered by the chest cold, but is lingering because of the dogs we have? Is it possible for me to have unexpectedly developed sensitivity to our dogs, or has the threshold of animal dander in our house reached such a high point that my asthma just went crazy?
Answer:
Virus that cause the common cold are the most common cause of an asthma attack. Viral infection cause 80% of asthma attacks in children and 60% in adults with asthma.
People with asthma may also experience asthma attacks while they have flu.
There is no detailed treatment for virus induced asthma, and steroid treatments are only partially useful against them.
The rescue inhaler needs to be used as often as you need it. I once used it 15 times in one day – I then had to go to the hospital because it obviously wasn’t working for me. If you are having an asthma attack then you have to use it!
It might be that your preventor inhaler is not strong enough to cope with the added pressure of the chest cold. My doctor has advised me to double up on my dose when I am ill with a chest cold because my lungs require extra support. Sometimes I need to take a 5 day course of steroids too if I am really bad.