Asthma is a respiratory disease. It creates narrowing of the air passages that results in difficult breathing, tightness of the chest, coughing, and breath-sounds such as wheezing. Occupational asthma refers to asthma that is caused by breathing in specific agents in the workplace. An abnormal response of the body to the presence of an agent in the workplace causes occupational asthma. Not all workers react with an asthmatic response when exposed to industrial agents.
Asthma strikes only a fraction of workers.
Asthmatic attacks can be controlled either by ending exposure to the agent responsible or by medical treatment. Asthma is triggered in several ways and most of them are not completely understood. Allergic Asthma Allergic asthma involves the body's immune system. This is a complex defense system that protects the body from harm caused by foreign substances or microbes. These are produced when the human body contacts an alien substance or microbe.