Asthma

How is asthma related to lungs and blood pressure?

Asthma can be said as a genetically or environmentally caused disorder resulting in minimal airflow in and out of the lungs. Breathing difficulties, wheezing and chest tightness are a few of the symptoms to it. This allergic reaction has a few elements to it and this interrelates with blood pressure and lungs in the body system. When an irritant triggers the reaction of asthma, the smooth muscle surrounding the airways (a tube which carries oxygen in and carbon dioxide out of the lungs) will start to constrict and get tighter. Inflammation of the bronchioles and swelling of airways will then occur and extra mucous will be secreted by the body. This extra will only cause the mucous the plug up together and restricts the air passage for oxygen and carbon dioxide and makes one more difficult to breath in and out. This will consequently lead to bronchospasm which decreases the size of the bronchioles. This decrease makes it harder for oxygen and carbon dioxide to be transported to and from the alveoli via the capillaries surrounding it. When this happens, air will be trapped inside the lungs and the pressure inside will build up to a point where one cannot breathe. This may also give tension and pressure to the heart leading to cardiac arrest. During asthma attack, to make up for the shortness of breath, one will start to breathe in deeply and harder. Normally, blood circulated in the body with the help of blood vessels will be transported from the lungs from the left atrium and then to the left ventricle (chamber that pumps blood throughout the body) of the heart. However a negative pressure in the thoracic cavity due to asthma will cause the sucking of blood back into the lungs even before it can be transported to the left atrium, thus resulting in a decrease filling of blood in the left ventricle of the heart. When not enough blood is inside the ventricle, there will be a lower end diastolic volume (total...