Asthma in Children: A Brief Review for Primary Care Providers

Abstract

Pediatric asthma is a common chronic condition with wide-ranging implications for children's health, their families, and the health care system. The diagnosis may be relatively straightforward for the child with characteristic symptoms, triggers, and response to therapy, but there are other less common presentations that can make the diagnosis challenging. Diagnosing asthma in a toddler with recurrent wheezing can be particularly difficult. Treating asthma in a step-wise fashion usually reduces symptom frequency and improves asthma control. Asthma exacerbations and poor outcomes from acute exacerbations remain an area in which we have room for improvement. This article provides an overview of the diagnosis and management of childhood asthma for the primary care provider. [ Pediatr Ann. 2019;48(3):e103–e109.]

Risk Factors for Chronic Cough in Young Children: A Cohort Study

“…In this analysis, we included children aged <6-years (i.e., pre-schoolers) presenting with cough as a symptom who had no known underlying chronic lung disease other than asthma. Children with asthma were included given inconsistencies with the diagnosis of asthma in young children ( 20 ). Exclusion criteria included: immunosuppressive conditions; receiving immunomodulating drugs for >2-weeks in the preceding 30-days; current or planned participation in another intervention study during the 8-weeks of follow-up in the overall study; severe ARI requiring admission, and; insufficient English that inhibited informed consent or collection of study data.…”

The clinical significance of spondin 2 eccentric expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells in bronchial asthma

“…It was generally accepted that BA in children was caused by multiple viral and bacterial infections or exposure to specific allergens, 25 some of which may eventually develop into persistent BA, seriously affecting children's health. Since BA's etiology and pathogenesis were still unclear, its treatment was relatively chaotic, and the abuse of hormones and antibiotics remained terrible, 26 thereby resulting in 27 Long-term, high-dose, and systemic use of hormones and antibiotics were widely applied in clinic cases, but it can also cause different degrees of systemic side effects, leading to poor compliance and unwillingness of parents to cooperate with treatment. 28 Hence, it was of great significance to diagnose and treat BA as early as possible to arrest BA development.…”

Association of IL-10-1082G > A, -819C > T and -592C > A Polymorphisms with susceptibility to asthma in children: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Pediatric asthma is a highly heterogeneous disorder with multiple clinical phenotypes and can have very serious consequences for children's health, their families, and the health care system (1)(2)(3). It is one of the most common chronic diseases among children and a leading cause of medical expenses (4)(5)(6).…”