If your child is frequently wheezing and coughing, your child could have asthma. Your pediatrician can help. Dr. C. Turner Lewis, III, at Children’s Medical Clinics in Kaufman, TX, provides a wide range of pediatric medical services, including diagnosis and treatment of asthma.
What You Need To Know About Childhood Asthma
Your child’s airways are smaller than yours. That means when your child suffers breathing difficulties, they can be far more pronounced. The breathing difficulties associated with asthma can be frightening for both you and your child.
It's helpful to be able to recognize the early signs of asthma in children. Your child may have asthma if your child experiences frequent:
- Wheezing or coughing
- Shortness of breath
- Episodes of bronchitis
- Tightness in the chest
Asthma signs and symptoms are often obvious in older children, and they can often tell you what’s wrong. Unfortunately, asthma is just as common in infants and toddlers and can be much more difficult to detect. You need to look for:
- Your child feeding more slowly
- Your child having difficulty breathing while feeding
- Your child frequently coughs, especially when active
- Your child quickly tires when active
Children with asthma also often have allergies, which can bring on an asthma attack. Allergy testing is one of the first steps in the treatment of asthma. Once the sources of allergy are determined, your pediatrician may recommend allergy shots, sublingual therapy, and other allergy treatments.
Your pediatrician will also test your child’s lung function to determine whether your child has asthma, and how severe it is. The professional treatment your pediatrician may recommend includes:
- Rescue inhalers to relieve acute symptoms
- Long-term asthma medications to provide lasting asthma relief
Want To Know More About Childhood Asthma?
To find out more about the early signs of asthma in children and asthma treatment, call Dr. Turner at Children’s Medical Clinics in Kaufman, TX. You can reach him in the office by calling (972) 932-1319, so call today.