Asthma

Asthma is a breathing problem. Your child may have a lot of attacks with wheezing (a high-pitched sound) and coughing. Your child's chest may feel tight. Asthma attacks can be triggered by exercise, cold viruses, cold air, strong emotions, and smoke or other irritants in the air. Attacks can also be caused by allergens such as pollens or animal dander.

• Make sure your child uses the asthma medicine your healthcare provider prescribed. Your child may need more than one type of medicine: one to prevent attacks (long-term control medicine) and another to help stop an attack once it has started (quick-relief medicine). Ask your healthcare provider when to use each kind. Make sure that you and your child know how to use all prescribed medicines correctly. 
• Long-term control medicine (also called controller): Your child's controller medicine is _____________________. Give ___ puffs every ___ hours every day. 
• Quick-relief Medicine (also called reliever): Your child's reliever medicine is _____________________. Give ___ puffs every ___ hours for ___ days OR give one nebulizer treatment every ___ hours for ___days. 
• Use a valved holding chamber, or spacer. Metered dose inhalers (MDIs) should always be used with a spacer. This attaches to the inhaler and helps your child get all the medicine to his or her lungs. Use a mask if your child has trouble with the mouthpiece. Make sure you have a mask that fits. 
• Your child may need special treatments. Your child may need to use a nebulizer machine to take his medicine. 
• Your child's nebulization treatment should contain 1 premixed vial of ____________________given every ______ hours for ____ days. 
• OR 
• Your child's nebulization treatment should contain _____ ml of _____________________ mixed with ________ ml of ____________________. Give a treatment every _____ hours for ____ days. 
• Oral steroids or other medicine. Your child's oral medicine is ______________________. Give _______ every ___ hours for ___ days. 
• Don't wait to start treatment. Start the inhaler or medicine when your child first coughs or wheezes. 
• Have your child use an inhaler before exercise. Your child may also cough or wheeze during exercise. Use a quick-relief (reliever) medicine 10 minutes before your child plans to exercise.

• Make sure your child stays away from triggers like feather pillows, tobacco smoke, and pets. 
• Learn how to dust-proof your child's bedroom. 
• Have your child take a bath or shower. This can help if your child wheezes after being around grass, pollen, weeds, or animals.

If you feel that your child needs immediate medical care.

• Your child has a hard time breathing or the wheezing is severe. 
• The wheezing does not get better after the second dose of quick-relief asthma medicine. 
• Your child's peak flow is in the red zone.

• The wheezing is not completely gone in 5 days. 
• Your child needs to use the quick-relief inhaler every 4 hours for more than 1 day. 
• You have other questions or concerns.

Written by B.D. Schmitt, MD, author of "Your Child's Health," Bantam Books.
This content is reviewed periodically and is subject to change as new health information becomes available. The information is intended to inform and educate and is not a replacement for medical evaluation, advice, diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional.