Bronchodilator

Drug or other agent that relaxes and expands the air passages of the lungs.

A drug which makes the bronchi wider, used in the treatment of asthma and allergy.

Substance that causes relaxation of smooth muscle walls of bronchi, leading to dilation or widening of the opening (lumen). May result in improvement in a patient’s symptoms (e.g., wheezing, shortness of breath) and lung function tests. A bronchoconstrictor has the opposite effect (constricts the airways).

Pharmacological agent that relaxes the muscles of the bronchus, alleviating bronchospasm and increasing airflow into the lungs; used as a symptomatic treatment in conditions such as asthma.

Drugs that dilate (widen) the bronchial airways to improve air flow. Bronchodilators are prescribed for people with asthma who have wheezing or breathing difficulties. All bronchodilators relieve coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, and troubled breathing. They are available in liquid, tablet, and extended- release form for long-term treatment. The medications are also available in injectable and inhaled forms, and generally, the inhaled form is preferable, particularly for acute attacks.

An agent that causes widening of the air passages by relaxing bronchial smooth muscle. Sympathomimetic drugs that stimulate beta-receptors, e.g. ephedrine, isoprenaline, and salbutamol, are potent bronchodilators and are used for relief of bronchial asthma and chronic bronchitis. These drugs are often administered as aerosols, giving rapid relief, but at high doses they may stimulate the heart.

This type of drug reduces the tone of smooth muscle in the lungs’ bronchioles and therefore increases their diameter. Such drugs are used in the treatment of diseases that cause bronchoconstriction, such as asthma and bronchitis. As bronchiolar tone is a balance between sympathetic and parasympathetic activity, most bronchodilators are either B, receptor agonists or cholinergic receptor antagonists although theophyllines are also useful.

A drug that expands the bronchi by relaxing bronchial muscle. There are three classes of bronchodilators: beta2 adrenergic-receptor agonists, methylxanthines, and anticholinergic agents. The beta2 adrenergic-receptor agonists produce the greatest bronchodilation in patients with bronchial asthma. The beta2 adrenergic-receptor agonists are the best drugs for patients with mild, intermittent asthma and for acute attacks of reactive airway disease.

Medicine that dilates, or opens up, the bronchial tubes.

A pharmaceutical agent that induces relaxation of the bronchial muscles, leading to the dilation and widening of the respiratory passages within the bronchi.