Asthma classification includes which categories?

• A. Intermittent; Mild persistent; Moderate persistent; Severe persistent asthma
• B. Acute; Subacute; Chronic; Terminal
• C. Stage I; Stage II; Stage III; Stage IV
• D. Minor; Moderate; Major; Critical

Answer: (A)

Asthma severity is categorized by how often symptoms occur, how often patients wake at night, and how well lung function is preserved, placing the disease into four levels. Intermittent asthma features symptoms that occur only a few times a week, with nighttime awakenings only a couple of times per month, normal activity between episodes, and normal lung function between attacks. Mild persistent asthma has more frequent symptoms, nighttime awakenings a few times a month, and minor limitation in activity, but lung function remains largely normal. Moderate persistent asthma involves daily symptoms, nighttime awakenings more than once a week but not nightly, and some limitation in activity with reduced but not severely impaired lung function. Severe persistent asthma shows continual symptoms, frequent or nightly nighttime awakenings, significant activity limitation, and markedly reduced lung function. These four categories are the classic framework used to guide treatment intensity. Other terms in the choices describe durations or stages used in different contexts (like acute vs chronic or cancer staging) and are not used to classify asthma severity.