What To Do When Your Child is Having Trouble Breathing

There are few things more intense or frightening as when it appears that your child is having trouble breathing. As a parent, you need to be able to do a quick assessment of the situation and take appropriate and precise action. The first thing you must do is keep your head about you. Secondly, you need to figure out why your child is having trouble breathing. Were they eating something and it went down the wrong pipe? Are they having an allergic reaction, an anaphylactic shock to something? Do they have some sort of lung disease such as asthma or cystic fibrosis? Once you figure out why, you need to go into action.

If the child is choking, are you able to remove the object that they are choking on. (if you have children, it might be a good idea to take CPR) If so, problem solved. If not, you must continue trying to dislodge the item while you are calling 911. The American Heart Association has specific guidelines on how to do this with back blows and chest blows.
If you have a teenager that is choking, you can do the Heimlich maneuver on them. However you do it, it is imperative to restore breathing to that child.

If they are having an allergic reaction and now they are having trouble breathing, you need to dial 911. If you have an epi pen, use it.
Give benedryl to them ONLY if they are able to swallow. Get them to the hospital or wait for the ambulance to arrive..but do it quickly.

Does your child have a lung disease? Asthma is the most common childhood lung illness in the United States.

My advice to pediatric asthma treatment or cystic fibrosis treatment
is that you find an outstanding Pediatric Pulmonologist. It is also important that this Pulmonologist have excellent Respiratory Therapists on staff to do teaching that your child or you can understand. It is important that a Pulmonologist be involved because of all of the new treatments and medications that have come about just in the last 20 years.

All of these are reasons to get your child to the Emergency Room as soon as possible.

Please remember that your child's breathing is a serious matter. If they complain of being short of breath or if you notice any signs and symptoms of them having any difficulty breathing, you need to get them help immediately.

The American Lung Association says, "When you can't breathe, nothing else matters..." This is very true.

How To Control Your Asthma

You know you did everything by the book and here you are having an asthma attack. What I tell people when they tell me that they are doing everything by the book is that their asthma...well, it has never read the book. It doesn't know that it is supposed to behave a certain way. Controlling ones asthma requires following the doctor's orders and some good common sense.

1. What triggers your asthma?
-If every time you go to the store and walk down the perfume aisle, you have an attack, maybe you should avoid going down that aisle.

-If dust is your trigger then make sure that you change your furnace filter every three months and get something that cleans the air.

Other triggers can be a cold or the flu. At the first sign of these coming on, get in contact with your Pulmonologist to see what you should do to keep your asthma under control.
Irritants such as cigarette smoke, stress, and strong smelling cleaning agents are also things that trigger your asthma.

Avoid those triggers as much as is possible. If you for some reason are not able to avoid it, keep a rescue inhaler on your person at all times. Rescue inhalers can include the following: Proventil, Albuterol, Ventolin, Combivent. These are all fast acting inhalers.

2. What are your doctor's orders?

If your doctor has ordered some long lasting bronchiodilators such as Spiriva, Foradil or Serevent, Continue to take those even if you are feeling good. Likewise, if your doctor has ordered maintenance breathing medications like Advair or Asthmanex, keep taking those every day even if your breathing is fantastic.

One of the biggest myths surrounding asthma is that it is not a serious illness to have. People's airways may be more reactive than other people's airways, but whenever we are speaking of an illness that has to do with breathing, it is a serious illness. The American Lung Association says, "When you cannot breathe, nothing else matters...". Anyone who has ever had to fight for their next breath knows that this is very true. Asthma, no matter how "mild", should be taken seriously.

Another myth of Asthma is that any doctor is qualified to manage one's asthma. This is an illness that requires a specialist. A Pulmonolgist is a lung specialist. They should be aware of the treatments that are new and are working better and longer than the old treatments. Your family doctor is wonderful, but when you have Asthma, you should not trust your breathing to just any doctor.

I wish you luck and good breathing.

Asthma Explained as Simply as Possible

Asthma is a disease of the airways in the lungs. It can make breathing very difficult in three different ways. First of all, the airways seem to tighten up. I have had many a patient say that "my lungs are tight", or "my chest feels tight". When listening to their breath sounds, one can hear wheezing or little air movement. Secondly, there is inflammation in the airways. This makes it very hard to exhale and again the sound that one hears is wheezing. The third way that asthma affects ones breathing is sensitive or over active airways. Things that do not affect people without asthma, can throw an asthmatic into a full blown asthma attack.

Things that can cause an Asthma Attack include the following, but are in no way limited to these few things:

1. Stress or other strong emotions
2. Smoking or second hand smoke.
3. Irritants such as strong perfumes, strong cleaning agents such as bleach or air pollutions.
4. Infections such as the flu, colds, sinus infections and the like.
5. Allergens. Allergy season is in full bloom right now. Pollens, molds, pet dander, etc...

The most common treatments to control asthma are for both the tightness and the inflammation of the airways. First of all, bronchodialators are generally prescribed.

Before I go any further, let me say this. If you or your child have asthma, please get treatment from a Pulmonologist. Go to a lung specialist. Your medical doctor I am sure is wonderful, but all the new medications out for asthma, all of the new treatments, well, the Pulmonologist studies them at length and knows which one is best for your asthma. The Pulmologist will do testing to determine exactly what will help your asthma symptoms and keep them under control and to a minimum. Asthma should always be taken seriously. The American Lung association says "When you can't breathe, nothing else matters". Go to a doctor who's speciality is your breathing. Take it seriously.

Bronchodilators that are commonly prescribed are the following: (this is in no way a complete list. This is a list of those that are most common.)

First of all, fast acting bronchodilators. These can be given via a nebulizer or an MDI (puffer).

Albuterol, Levealbuterol, Ipatroprium Bromide

Long Lasting Bronchodiators:

Spriva, Serevent

Anti inflammatory medications which are corticosteroids:

Flovent, Advair (also contains serevent), pulmicort etc.

It is very important to take this medication as your doctor orders. If you are beginning to need more of the fast acting bronchodilators, more of the rescue inhalers, you may need to call the doctor. If you feel that nothing is helping and your breathing is worse, do not hesitate to get yourself or your loved one to the hospital emergency room. Remember, when an illness, any illness, affects one's breathing, it is so very important to take it seriously.

I hope that I have explained this so that it can be understood. I wish you good breathing.