Asthma is a chronic lung disease that causes the airways to swell internally, restricting airflow and causing breathing difficulty. It often develops in childhood. Your child may have some friends with asthma, and as a parent, you probably have some questions about asthma and how it might affect your own child. Keep reading to discover the answers.
What Are the Signs of Asthma?
When you think of asthma, you may picture someone grabbing their chest as they wheeze and struggle to breathe. Some children are not diagnosed with asthma until they have an attack of this sort, but ideally, you should recognize milder symptoms and seek diagnosis early. The following are symptoms of asthma in kids:
- Feelings of tightness in the chest
- Feeling short of breath, even after doing light physical activity
- Unwillingness to participate in exercise
- Wheezing or whistling sounds when breathing
- Trouble sleeping due to poor breathing
Take your child to the doctor for diagnosis whenever they experience these symptoms. The symptoms could be caused by bronchitis or pneumonia, not asthma, but these conditions require medical care too.
What Causes Asthma?
Asthma has no single cause. Rather, various risk factors make asthma more likely.
Family history is a huge determinant in who develops asthma and who doesn't. Children who have a parent with asthma are up to six times more likely to develop asthma themselves. If your child has a serious respiratory infection, especially in infancy, their risk of asthma increases. Allergies, obesity, and living in an area with heavy air pollution are other notable risk factors.
What Are Some Common Asthma Triggers?
For many children with asthma, the symptoms come and go. Knowing what triggers your child's asthma attacks allows you to avoid those triggers and therefore reduce the risk of a serious attack. Asthma triggers vary from patient to patient, but common ones include tobacco smoke, air pollution, pet dander, mold, and smoke.
Your child's pediatrician can work with you to identify your child's asthma triggers. You may need to make some changes to your lifestyle to eliminate those triggers. For example, if you are a smoker, you may need to quit smoking or only smoke outside the home. If your child's asthma is triggered by pet dander, you may have to make the hard decision to re-home your dog or cat.
How Is Asthma Treated?
Your pediatrician may recommend two types of medication for the treatment of asthma. The first is called a quick-relief medication. This is a drug that your child can take, usually through an inhaler, when an asthma attack comes on. The medication will quickly dilate the airways so your child can breathe freely again.
The second kind of medication is called a controller drug. This is a medication that your child takes long-term to prevent asthma attacks in the first place. These medications are also often inhaled. Not every child needs a controller medication. Children who have asthma symptoms less than twice per week often only need a quick-relief medication.
Will Your Child Outgrow Asthma?
Some children do outgrow asthma. This seems to be more common in children with milder asthma symptoms. Many continue to suffer from asthma for the rest of their lives, however. Do not avoid seeking treatment for your child's asthma in hope that it will go away on its own. Without treatment, the symptoms may become worse, and your child may experience a life-threatening attack.
Your child's pediatrician can track their asthma symptoms over time. If the symptoms appear to disappear, the doctor may recommend changing or reducing use of medications - but you should never change your child's medication protocol without the doctor's approval.
Asthma is a common ailment, but it can also be a very serious one. If you suspect your child may suffer from asthma, schedule an appointment with their pediatrician. Reach out to Valley Pediatric Clinic if you're looking for a new doctor for your child.