Discovery offers hope for asthma-sufferers

A SCIENTIFIC breakthrough could benefit hundreds of thousands of Irish asthmatics who experience serious attacks when suffering from a cold.

Experts hope their discovery will pave the way for new treatments to prevent attacks during the winter — often the most dangerous attacks.

Around half of all asthmatics are believed to suffer an acute attack, when a normal reliever inhaler or steroid preventative does not have the same affect as usual, when they have a respiratory virus, usually a cold.