Care and Treatment of Asthma in Athletes, Version 2.0, reviews the pathology and basic mechanisms of asthma and provides current prevention and control techniques. This interactive course features approximately four hours of online study developed by Ricardo A. Tan, MD, a specialist in asthma and allergy medicine.

The course contains the latest guidelines from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute for asthma diagnosis and management. These guidelines include information on classifying the severity of asthma and the level of asthma control and guidelines for a stepwise approach to treatment based on asthma severity.

Care and Treatment of Asthma in Athletes, Version 2.0, includes an abundance of updated information and improved functionality. The course starts with the essentials, such as assessing for asthma and reviewing medications and treatment options, then guides you through the process of applying these principles to solve a series of realistic case scenarios. It's a powerful, effective way to learn.

In this course, you will assume the role of a high school track team’s athletic trainer working with two virtual mentors: a team physician and an asthma specialist. During the course’s six “days,” you interact with athletes in various real-life situations as your mentors guide you through various issues and exercises:

Day 1: Signs and Symptoms. You’ll review the signs and symptoms of various respiratory conditions, such as asthma, bronchitis, and exercise-induced asthma. Then you’ll work through case studies of track athletes to identify their signs and symptoms and determine their respiratory conditions.

Day 2: Responding to Asthma Attacks. You’ll learn how to respond when an athlete presents with the signs and symptoms of an asthma attack. You will cover the symptoms of several student athletes and anticipate how to react to an asthma attack.

Day 3: Patient Care. You’ll examine the procedures and tests that physicians use in confirming an asthma diagnosis. Day 3 covers the most current information on medications commonly used in treating asthma as well as their primary effects and side effects. You’ll also find important guidelines on managing the medications of affected athletes.

Day 4: Avoiding Triggers. You’ll review the triggers of asthma attacks and explore methods for helping athletes avoid these triggers.

Day 5: Selecting Sports and Preventing Attacks. You’ll learn which sports or activities people with asthma tolerate best as well as general measures to assist athletes in avoiding asthma attacks during sports or athletic activities.

Day 6: Responding to Acute Attacks. This final session helps you integrate the full range of course information into practical application. Working with several athletes, you’ll hone your skills in responding to acute asthma attacks occurring on the field.

Finally, an online test evaluates your understanding of material covered by the entire interactive course. Care and Treatment of Asthma in Athletes is an accessible overview of asthma that allows certified athletic trainers to review essential information and athletic training students to gain an introductory perspective on this topic.