There are numerous lung conditions that can affect children and adults alike.
Allergists/Immunologists treat lung disorders that tend to be allergic in nature like asthma.
Some examples of lung conditions treated by Allergy & Asthma Specialists include:
Chronic Cough
Cough is one of the most common reason for patients to seek medical attention from an allergy specialist. Chronic cough can be cost by many different disease states or illnesses. However, the vast majority of these cases are caused by the more common causes such as asthma, allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) or medication side effects. Often, chronic cough is multifactorial or caused by several different medical problems occurring together. For example, allergic rhinitis, secondary sinusitis and asthma could all be present at the same time leading to considerable cough. Please allow us to help you with this frustrating medical problem.
Our friendly staff at Allergy & Asthma Specialists can evaluate your cough, and help develop an effective treatment plan.
Asthma
Asthma is a chronic inflammatory lung disease characterized by cough, wheeze, chest tightness, and shortness of breath. It is estimated that some 20 million people are afflicted by some form of asthma. Asthma can be mild, moderate or severe, and it can change or go into remission for months or years. It is by far the most common chronic illness of childhood, and if untreated or poorly managed asthma can lead to a significant decline in quality of life.
Asthma can cause decreased lung function, sleep disruption, school or work absence, increased medical costs, and can in severe cases lead to death.
There are several different varieties or type of asthma including exercise-induced asthma, cough-variant asthma, allergic asthma, and even occupational asthma.
Vocal Cord Dysfunction
One of the most common disorders to masquerade as asthma is vocal cord dysfunction (VCD).
If is caused by intermittent spasms of the vocal cords and patients often look like they have asthma. Symptoms can include: cough, wheeze, throat tightness, hoarseness or weak voice, and shortness of breath. VCD can, like asthma, be triggered by irritant exposures, GERD, exercise, and viral infections. Wheezing with VCD is often louder when breathing in as opposed to breathing out. Some patients can have both asthma and VCD.
It is important to arrive at the proper diagnosis in these cases as the treatments for asthma and VCD are different. VCD is often treated with meds aimed at relaxing the vocal cords and speech therapy. Our staff is especially trained to treat complex cases of asthma and VCD. Please contact us and let us start your evaluation right away.