It is Not Asthma Always

Perhaps after migraine, asthma is a the most common misdiagnosed condition. This is not just my clinical observation. Almost 1/3rd of asthma patients were misdiagnosed – as per a research study. There are certain reasons behind this condition. You need not to know in detail about the medical side. But being a patient you should know about this for sure. Because once you are diagnosed with asthma, you need to taking medicines without reason. Then these medicines can be harmful for you. And these can leave serious scars on your body.

Writing this post has a logic. And that comes from my heart. As I treat cases of Avascular Necrosis- I come across many young patients. Many of them were told that they are asthmatic. And for that doctor prescribed them with steroids. These steroids lead these patient to me with “rotten-joints”. And when I closely diagnosed them- almost none of them were cases of Asthma!!

It hurts.

So as a clinician I will discuss all these things here one by one. And why does this misdiagnosis happen?

The cause behind Problem

“I feel discomfort in breathing.”

When a patient, tells this. Without giving a second thought most of the physician name it asthma. And this is how the diagnosis starts. Because nobody gives it a damn to find the cause of “problem in breathing”. The most common condition in such cases is – stuffy nose!

But the specialisation is so pinpointed in western medicines- your pulmonologist doesn’t understand the EAR-NOSE-THROAT. Because he needs not to do this.

So a simple case of the “allergic-rhinitis” becomes a case of Asthma. And you start your medicines.

This is only one paradigm of the problem.

Secondly, as a patient- when you suffer from breathlessness. You just diagnose yourself with asthma. And the first word you tell to your physician- “sir I am suffering with asthma”.

Because nowadays medical practices are like running a grocery store. Patients believe to pick their treatment by themselves. Patient tells a doctor I need some “inhaler”. And when one educated doctor doesn’t do this- patients change the doctors.

Because we are not aware about the seriousness of the breathing problems.

Why does it become Asthma?

The main reason, every second disease of the lungs- with breathing issues becomes Asthma is very simple. The website of European Respiratory Society accepts that there is no gold standard for the diagnosis of Asthma.

The tests can give us limited knowledge about the system. And this makes Asthma a most commonly misdiagnosed condition.

This is condition is not only- there are many conditions which are serious. But these conditions might be serious ones too. Conditions like – Pulmonary embolism and Sarcoidosis.

So it becomes important to understand the value of the right diagnosis in case of Asthma.

When it comes to Ayurveda the same applies.

Ayurvedic Treatment for Asthma

Asthma is the condition where all the three doshas involve together.

Because of the disturbances of the Pitta- inflammation occurs. This inflammation causes overproduction of the Kapha. When this kapha occludes the passage of Vata- this blocked Vata causes the problems.

So this is not just a simple disease. We need to understand this in a proper way.