Asthma Attacks
What can you do to prevent asthmatic attacks?
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I am answering this question on the assumption that the asthma is caused by something at work, but the same principals are likely to apply to non-occupational asthma. Once occupational asthma has started, attacks can be provoked by exposure to the original cause, and by many non-specific triggers which affect most asthmatics. The best management for occupational asthma is to remove the cause. Good examples are removing humidifiers from air-conditioning systems, when contamination of the humidifier is the specific cause of the asthma, or working with tissue cultures rather than laboratory animals if laboratory animals are the cause, or changing from complex charged platinum salts for catalytic converters to uncharged amine salts. Once sensitisation to an occupational agent has occurred, the best results occur when the affected worker is removed from exposure within a year of the first asthma symptom. Even after this attacks can be provoked by indirect exposures to the original cause.
Attacks can also be caused by virus infections, cold air, exercise, perfumes, menstruation and many other non-specific triggers. The best approach is to take a preventer inhaler regularly if asthma is present more than once or twice a week. An inhaled corticosteroid is the prefered first line preventer. This will also help if some occupational exposure continues.
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