Taking control of your child's asthma

Posted on March 29, 2009

Tips to help your child remain symptom free

(NC)-For many Canadian parents of children with asthma, frequent trips to the emergency room, unscheduled visits to the doctor's office and countless sick days are common occurrences.

"I can't count the number of times my husband and I have stayed home from work or scrambled out of bed in the middle of the night to make a trip to the emergency room for my son's asthma," said Lija Whittaker. "We've always struggled to manage our son's asthma and as busy, working parents, it's hard to find time to get more involved."

According to the Paediatric Asthma in Canada survey, which was developed by Leger Marketing working with the Asthma Society of Canada (ASC), 44 per cent of Canadian parents have had to make unscheduled doctor appointments to deal with their child's asthma in the last year and 26 per cent have had to take their child to the emergency department to deal with asthma. Yet, the survey found that parents of children with mild and moderate asthma appear to not be that concerned about their child's condition.

"Many parents don't take their child's asthma seriously," said, Dr. Denis Bérubé, pediatric pulmonologist, associate professor of pediatrics, CHU Sainte-Justine, Université de Montréal. "All levels of childhood asthma, whether mild, moderate or severe, pose serious health risks to a child."

With busy schedules, it can be difficult for parents to monitor their children's asthma and ensure that they are following their doctor's recommendations. Here are some tips that parents can use to help their child remain healthy, active and symptom free.

Start by getting educated about your child's asthma

According to the Canadian Asthma Consensus Guidelines, asthma education is an essential component of asthma care. Parents should speak to healthcare professionals and go online to learn more about the disease. Visit the ASC's two main asthma education websites, www.airsquare.ca (online resource for teens) and www.asthmakids.ca (online resource for parents and children).

Develop an Asthma Action Plan with your doctor

An Asthma Action Plan is an excellent resource for managing your child's asthma. It includes information about your child's medication plans, signs of trouble and steps to take in case of an emergency. An Asthma Action Plan should be developed with your doctor and can be provided to teachers, family members and friends. Visit www.asthma.ca to learn more about Asthma Action Plans.

Reduce asthma triggers in the home and teach your child how to avoid them

Triggers often bring on asthma attacks. A trigger is anything that causes inflammation in the airways, which then leads to asthma symptoms. It's important to identify your child's asthma triggers, which can be done through allergy tests, and eliminate triggers from the home. Teach your child to avoid triggers while at school or outside of the home.

Follow your doctor's recommendations

A significant challenge of caring for children with asthma is that they often don't comply with their treatments. Although the Canadian Asthma Guidelines recommend the once or twice-daily use of an inhaled maintenance treatment, such as an inhaled corticosteroid, only 27 per cent of children use medication daily, whether they are experiencing problems or not. Convenience and a favourable safety and tolerability profile for a medication can be factors in asthma management. Recently Health Canada approved a once-daily asthma treatment option available for Canadians six years of age and older called Alvesco that may help patients remain more compliant with their doctor's recommendations.

Help keep your child symptom free at school

When children go to school, they face increased exposure to viral infections, which can trigger asthma symptoms. For children with allergic triggers or exercised induced asthma, school can also pose asthma risks. In fact, asthma is one of the leading causes of absenteeism from school. Parents should meet with staff from their child's school to discuss their child's daily Asthma Action Plan, and ask about the school's medication and emergency policy.

"As a parent it's important to be involved and become educated about your child's asthma, especially about management and the use of daily medications," said Whittaker. "Parents should always speak to their doctor and find a treatment plan that is safe, convenient and works for their child."

Courtesy News Canada

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