children s health issues
Asthma in Children
Symptoms of Asthma in Children
As the airways narrow in an asthma attack, the child develops difficulty breathing, chest tightness, and Cough in Children , typically accompanied by wheezing. Not all asthma attacks cause wheezing, however. Mild asthma, particularly in very young children, may result only in a cough. Some older children with mild asthma tend to cough only when exercising or when exposed to cold air. Also, children with an extremely severe asthma attack may actually not wheeze because there is too little air flowing even to make a noise. In a severe attack, breathing becomes visibly difficult, wheezing usually becomes louder, the child breathes faster and with greater effort, and the ribs stand out when the child breathes in (inspiration). With very severe attacks, the child gasps for breath and sits upright, leaning forward. The skin is sweaty and pale or blue-tinged. Children who have frequent severe attacks sometimes have slowed growth, but their growth usually is similar to that of other children by adulthood. 