Many asthmatic patients may have poor breathing technique

Abnormal breathing can cause symptoms such as chest tightness and breathlessness, which may be misattributed to other diseases. These symptoms may be improved by explanation and breathing retraining exercises. Symptomatic hyperventilation and dysfunctional breathing have been linked to asthma in patients treated in secondary care settings, but have not been investigated in primary care situations. Thomas et al (p 1098) used a symptom based questionnaire to look for dysfunctional breathing in adults treated for asthma in the community. They found positive screening scores in a third of women and a fifth of men. If confirmed, these findings may point towards new treatments for asthma.

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    StumbleUpon    Technorati    What's this?

Relevant Article

Prevalence of dysfunctional breathing in patients treated for asthma in primary care: cross sectional survey

Mike Thomas, R K McKinley, Elaine Freeman, and Chris Foy
BMJ 2001 322: 1098-1100. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]