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A newly-developed app called MyAsthma app that serves as an asthma management tool is now available for download at the iTunes app store. It can help people with this condition to monitor and manage it more effectively.

The app funded by London-based pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) was created with experts at the Nottingham Respiratory Research Unit which is based at The University of Nottingham and Nottingham University Hospitals Trust. People who live asthma, as well as their carers, now have an asthma management tool to help them figure out what triggers the attacks via data about environmental factors such as air temperature, pollution and even the level of pollen.

MyAsthma app installed on smartphones also makes Asthma Control TestTM (ACT) or Childhood Asthma Control Test (C-ACT) which was also developed by GSK, available. It allows them to keep track of how well they have been able to control their asthma every 30 days.

Moreover, users can track the date when they had an asthma attack, its symptoms, what triggered it, and the medication used. They may also record peak flow readings, a test that measures air that flows in and out of the lungs. One of the features of MyAsthma app is its ability to be linked with other health and fitness apps.

The information the users put into the app can then be shared with their physicians to provide more insight into their condition, the EurekAlert reported.

It is unclear what causes asthma but experts believe that hereditary and environmental factors may have a role. Asthma attacks may be triggered by contact with allergens such as pollen, dust mites, mold spores, pet dander or particles of cockroach waste.

It can also be due to having a cold, exposure to smoke and other irritants in the air, stress, and activities like exercise, according to Mayo Clinic.