I have asthma. Papa Tree has asthma. Usually it just occurs when we exercise- which means we haven’t had any asthma problems for the last 2 years! (that’s another story!)  However, Willow had some wheezing episodes this winter.  We have wondered if it might be the first sign of asthma.  Dr. Gilgoff has some good insight into the types of coughs and wheezes your child can have and what they might mean and what you can do.

The cough that won’t go away: when to consider asthma?

by Dr. Gilgoff

Looking back over the past few months (was that a long winter, or is it just me?), we saw so many coughs and colds.  While the majority of coughs stem from a viral upper respiratory infection, and therefore will get better with time, there are some causes of chronic cough that you don’t want to miss.  As doctors, we are synthesizing data from your history – including family history, present illness, physical examination and occasionally laboratory data and or ancillary tests.   Making an asthma diagnosis is a classic example of having to put the whole story together carefully.  You never want to over-diagnose asthma – but you don’t want to miss it either!

Asthma is a type of sensitivity.  A child with asthma has hyper-reactive airways, meaning that certain stimuli (dust, cigarette smoke, mold, cats, cockroaches etc.) will trigger a reaction in the lungs.  For a long time we knew that the reaction involved a constriction of the lung’s small airways (called bronchioles), and indeed patients feel “tight” and have difficulty breathing.  But there also is an enormous inflammatory component to asthma, and this contributes greatly to the disease process.  Certain conditions run together, and often people with asthma have dry skin or eczema and allergies.  Sometimes a baby will develop all three at an early age, and we are investigating ways to prevent what we call theRead More »What Does Asthma Look Like?