Severe asthma is a serious health concern that can lead to respiratory failure and death.
Asthma kills an estimated 5000 people a year in the United States and as many as 470,000 seek hospital treatment for asthma symptoms. Despite its prevalence, experts differ in the definition of the disease. Clinical authorities typically favor a broad, comprehensive definition. Other authorities maintain that asthma is not a single disease, but a group of closely related diseases with common clinical symptoms. Asthma is a condition in which the bronchial tubes in the lungs react to different stimuli by becoming inflamed.