Does Your Child Have Asthma?

Is your child coughing too much? Most childhood coughing is not to be worried about but if your child's coughing persists or they began to experience wheezing and has trouble breathing, it could be a symptom of a more serious problem such as asthma or bronchiolitis.

What is Asthma?

Asthma is a disease of the lungs, which causes narrowing and inflammation of the lungs. It is a serious and potentially life threatening illness that affects approximately 6 million children worldwide and is the most common childhood chronic illness which keeps children away from school and sometimes leads to hospitalization.

Asthmatic people have sensitive airways, which when exposed to certain triggers, such as pollens, dust, smoke etc. their airways becomes narrower making it difficult to breath and leading to symptoms of asthma.

What are the symptoms?

The symptoms include coughing, wheezing, tightness in chest and shortness of breath.

What triggers asthma symptoms?

The reason behind asthma attack is unknown but experts suggest that certain triggers are known to bring on attacks. So, try to keep your child away from the common triggers that can lead to an asthma attack. Following is the list of some of the triggers:

• Viral infections, such as cold and flu
• Air pollution
• Dust
• Wood smoke
• Sinusdefine infections
• Pollen
• Cigarette smoke
• Exercise/activity
• Changes in temperature and weather
• Bush fire
• Some foods, food preservative and colours
• Aspirin, or ibuprofen
• Heartburn
• House dust mites
• Moulds and fungi
• Perfume
• Emotional factors such as laughter, stress, depressiondefine, financial problems and bereavement.
• Furry and feathery animals

How is asthma diagnosed?

The doctor will examine the child and will take the detailed history related to the child’s symptoms, such as how long they’ve had the symptoms’, how often they occur and do you think there is any factor which trigger the symptoms.

He will conduct a physical examination to determine how much effort your child is using to breathe; listening to lungs for wheeze and could also get a test done to measure expiratory function.

Can my child's asthma be treated?

Sadly there is no cure for asthma, but there are some excellent medicines available to help you to control your child’s asthma so that is does not interfere with his/her day to day life.

The doctor after examination of your child will prescribe the medication (commonly given through a metered dose inhaler (MDI) or puffer) depending up on the severity of the asthma.

He may recommend either relievers (which open rapidly narrow airways) or preventers (treat the inflamed airways). A child is given reliever such as Ventolin, through a spacer so that a child can breathe medication deep into lungs.

Will my child grow out of asthma?

For some children by the time they become an adult some symptoms will be gone while some others may find that their symptoms become milder. By adulthood, two out of 3 children will not have asthma attacks. However, some studies point out that the underlying condition does not go away and it is possible that symptoms may come back in later life.

What prevention measures should I take to keep my child away from asthma attack?

Keep your eyes open for the factors which trigger attacks of asthma in your child. Smoking should be avoided; exposure to animals that cause symptoms, often household pets such as cats, dogs should be limited or avoided. You must keep your house as clean as reasonably possible to eliminate mold, pests, and other allergens.

Try to keep the temperature in your house moderate. Get your child to doctor
for regular follow-up visits, at least every three to 6 months.