Peer Reviewed
Feature Article Respiratory medicine

Difficult to control asthma in children

Andrew Tai, John Massie
An updated version is available in the linked supplement
Abstract

Asthma is one of the most common paediatric presentations to general practice. Some children demonsrate persistent symptoms despite appropriate use of medications. This review provides a user-friendly approach to managing difficult to control asthma in children.

Key Points
    • Difficult to control asthma carries significant morbidity to children and their families.
    • It is important to ensure that the diagnosis of asthma is correct.
    • Patients’ medications, drug delivery method, adherence to treatment, home environment and psychosocial factors should be assessed. Precipitating factors, particularly exposure to tobacco smoke, should be minimised.
    • Inhaled corticosteroids are the cornerstone of therapy. The dose should be titrated to control symptoms, maximise efficacy and minimise adverse effects.
    • GP’s should regularly review patients and establish a partnership of care.
Get full access
Subscribe for full access to all articles
Buy this article

Single article purchases are temporarily unavailable due to site maintenance.

If you would like to purchase an article during this time, please email us at [email protected] with the article details and we'll assist you directly. We'll also let you know when online purchasing is available again.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Already a subscriber?