What is cardiac asthma?

Cardiac asthma is not a form of asthma. It's a type of coughing or wheezing that happens with left heart failure. Depending on how severe the symptoms are, this wheezing can be a medical emergency.

Heart failure can cause fluid to build up in the lungs, a condition called pulmonary edema. It also can cause fluid to build up in and around the airways. This buildup of fluid can cause shortness of breath, coughing and wheezing. Because these symptoms are like those of asthma, the condition is called cardiac asthma.

True asthma is a long-term condition caused by inflammation of the airways. The inflammation narrows the airways, causing breathing trouble. True asthma is not caused by fluid in the lungs or heart disease. But growing research shows a connection between asthma and a higher risk of heart disease.

Knowing the difference between asthma and heart failure is important. That's because each condition has different treatments. Treatments for heart failure can help improve the symptoms of both heart failure and cardiac asthma. Overuse of treatments for true asthma, such as rescue inhalers, may be harmful and may worsen heart issues.

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Dec. 30, 2025 See more Expert Answers

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  2. Arteriovenous fistula
  3. Atrioventricular canal defect
  4. Automated external defibrillators: Do you need an AED?
  5. Blood tests for heart disease
  6. Cardiac amyloidosis — Treatment options
  7. Cardiac amyloidosis — What is amyloid and how does it affect the heart
  8. Cardiac catheterization
  9. Chagas disease
  10. Chest X-rays
  11. Coronary angiogram
  12. Coronary artery bypass surgery
  13. CT scan
  14. Dick's Story
  15. Echocardiogram
  16. Ejection fraction: What does it measure?
  17. Electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG)
  18. Flu shots and heart disease
  19. Heart arrhythmia
  20. Heart failure
  21. Heart failure action plan
  22. Heart failure and sex: Is it safe?
  23. Heart transplant
  24. Heart transplant to treat dilated cardiomyopathy: Elmo's story
  25. Hemochromatosis
  26. Holiday Heart
  27. Honey: An effective cough remedy?
  28. Implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs)
  29. MRI
  30. MRI
  31. Organ transplant in highly sensitized patients
  32. Pacemaker
  33. Palliative care
  34. Pseudoaneurysm: What causes it?
  35. Scleroderma
  36. Seeing inside the heart with MRI
  37. Stem cells: What they are and what they do
  38. Stress test
  39. Symptom Checker
  40. Tachycardia
  41. The Last Brother's Heart
  42. Transplant advances
  43. Triathlete transplant
  44. Ventricular assist device
  45. Video: Heart and circulatory system