Denise Rebel has been an asthma (asma) sufferer for as long as she can remember--as a kid it meant no summer camp because the results could be catastrophic.
"I was sick all the time," Denise said. "I was always having problems you know, I went to school in east Texas and so that always flared me up and I was in the emergency room all the time so when I was younger it affected me a great deal."
"I was sick all the time," Denise said. "I was always having problems you know, I went to school in east Texas and so that always flared me up and I was in the emergency room all the time so when I was younger it affected me a great deal."
Dr. Gary Weinstein is a pulmonologist at Texas Health Dallas which is the first hospital in north Texas to offer the procedure.
"We're inserting this into the trachea," Dr. Weinstein said while he threaded a bronchoscope with a flexible catheter into a model lung.
The tip of the catheter expands to touch airway walls--a controlled blast of heat then reduces the smooth muscle making it easier to breathe.
The procedure is completed over three visits with each visit taking about an hour.
"This has the ability to impact them in a very positive way for the rest of their lives," Dr. Weinstein said. "This could be a real game changer for people with severe, persistent asthma."
Patients will still need inhalers but research indicates the procedure reduces emergency room visits by 84%, hospitalizations by 73% and lost school and work days by 66%.
Currently he bronchial thermoplasty is FDA approved for people 18 and over who have severe asthma.
Denise hopes it will someday be made available to her.
"I would totally consider it if I was able to because it does make a big difference," Denise said. "I do understand that you are still on medications but it helps with the constantly being on steroids."
It's not a cure, but for many like Denise it may be the next best thing.
"It's a horrible thing not being able to breathe."
Source:
hxtp://www.the33tv.com/news/kdaf-asthma-therapy-story,0,928035.story
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