How should Sunita's asthma be classified based on her symptoms?

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To determine how Sunita's asthma should be classified, it is important to look at the frequency and severity of her symptoms. The classification of asthma is primarily based on how often symptoms occur, how much they affect daily activities, and the need for rescue medication.

When asthma is classified as moderate persistent, it typically involves experiencing symptoms daily, as well as nighttime awakenings occurring one to two times per week. Patients may also require the use of short-acting beta-agonists (rescue inhalers) on a daily basis. This classification indicates a level of asthma that typically necessitates better control through the use of daily controller medications in addition to occasional rescue inhalers.

In contrast, mild intermittent asthma is characterized by symptoms occurring less than twice a week and nighttime awakenings less than twice a month. Mild persistent asthma involves more frequent symptoms than mild intermittent but still allows for reasonably normal activities, with night symptoms occurring three to four times a month. Severe persistent asthma would represent the most serious category, where symptoms are continuous, with frequent nighttime awakenings and significant limitations in daily activities.

Given that Sunita's symptoms align with the criteria indicating moderate persistent asthma, this classification emphasizes the need for a structured asthma management plan to maintain control over her condition effectively

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