What are the warning signs and symptoms of an asthma attack?
Warning signs before asthma attacks vary from person to person. In one form, known as brittle asthma, people may go from no symptoms to severe acute asthma within minutes. For most people, however, there are warning signs before asthma attacks and these are of three types. Unusual symptoms which always or nearly always precede an attack. Examples of these are: a tickly cough; a strange sensation in the skin (usually an itch) or nose; lightheadedness or sickness. There are other warning symptoms and it is important for everyone to recognize their own. Your usual symptoms of asthma getting worse despite usual treatment. If you monitor your own peak expiratory flow, changes in the readings tend to take place before the symptoms start, and give the earliest warnings of an attack. There are three patterns of change to watch out for: • steadily falling readings • morning dips • increased morning to evening gap in readings The symptoms of an attack are the same as the symptoms of asthma – cou
