Asthma and Children

Asthma and Children: Advice for Parents

If your child has asthma, both of you should be familiar with the asthma medications and devices, such as spacers, nebulizers, and metered-dose inhalers. Your pediatrician should discuss the function of each medication with you and your child, as well as how to use these devices. It is important that parents and other caregivers recognize the signs of an acute asthma attack and the use of "rescue" medications.

 

Asthma is a chronic condition, but with proper management, your child can have a normal childhood with no restrictions on sports and recreational activities, except in the most severe of cases.

 

Prognosis for Children With Asthma

Generally, children who have mild asthma are more likely to be symptom-free when they become adults. Those who improve typically do so in adolescence. It has been suggested that if a child develops asthma before age three, his or her prognosis is poorer. Children who have asthmatic symptoms only when they are sick with colds and other upper respiratory infections tend to improve as well.