Bronchodilator therapy is treatment with a bronchodilator, also called a broncholytic, a substance that dilates the bronchi and bronchioles, lowering resistance in the airway and increasing airflow to the lungs, most often given by inhaler for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the two most common conditions treated. Bronchodilators fall into short-acting forms, which give quick relief from sudden airway constriction, and long-acting forms, which help manage and prevent symptoms over time, and the three main prescription types are beta-2 adrenergic agonists, anticholinergics and theophylline. The drugs are sometimes used, with more debated benefit, for bronchiolitis and bronchiectasis, and they are frequently prescribed for restrictive lung diseases despite unproven effectiveness in that setting.
Facts
Connections
Treats
Bronchodilator therapy is standard symptomatic treatment for bronchiectasis.
Bronchodilator therapy is standard symptomatic treatment for bronchitis.
Sources
1. The use of adrenal substance in the treatment of asthma (Internet Archive record of the 1900 JAMA reprint)
Publication note on the archival record pageQuote, Publication note on the archival record page
Reprinted from The journal of the American Medical Association, May 12, 1900.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was bronchodilator therapy first described in the medical literature?
As early as 1900, in a Journal of the American Medical Association article on adrenal substance for asthma.
The record of bronchodilator therapy traces to 1900, when an article on the use of adrenal substance in the treatment of asthma appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association, reprinted on May 12, 1900.
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