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What tests do you order to diagnose Asthma in young children?
Question : What tests do you order to diagnose Asthma in young children?
What are the least risky and most cost-effective tests that doctors order so that Asthma can be comfirmed or rejected in a diagnoses?
Actually, I’m looking for what specific tests do they perform. B/c the symptons of asthma can similar to other illnesses, such as CF in a young child. So, in order to help diagnose a child with asthma, what type of tests do doctors run? like a blood work, etc..?
How about if the child is just 3 years old? I hear that a lung function test is not very reliable.. what else can you do? Thanks
asthma in children
Best answer:
Answer by martincpruitt
you need to take them to a childhood asthma doctor but wheezing and shortness of breath are good indicators
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#2 written by atreadia 1 year ago
At three years old it is really hard to tell. However, the doctors can test for allergins causing asthma attacks. This consists of needles which have either been dipped in an allergin solution that is pressed into the skin, or actual shots that are injected under the skin. A positive allergin test is a reaction to the allergin introduced. If it is negative, then the child/person is not allergic to that allergin.
Other wise doctors tend to hold off diagnosis of asthma/reactive airways disease until they are old enough to do a PFT.
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#3 written by Calvin 1 year ago
The best test to confirm the diagnosis of asthma is a Pulmonary Function Test. It is a very simple test. The child will be asked to blow through a given tube before and after the use of Ventolin(the blue puffer). Most of the asthma cases can be linked to an allergy. To confirm that, the Dr will do skin prick test. It is a very safe and painless test. There is also another test to confirm the allergy, that is to collect and test the blood for a certain antibody(IgE). But of course, a good clinician can tell his/her client with 99% certainty that he/she has asthma by just taking a medical history and listening to his/her lungs. One last note- asthma can be controlled! Seek help immediately
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#5 written by mompoo 1 year ago
WHAT TO LOOK FOR:
Anxious or scared look
Cough
Unusual paleness or sweating
Flared nostrils when the child tries to get some air
Pursed lips breathing
Fast breathing
Vomiting
Hunched-over body posture; the child can’t stand or sit straight and can’t relax
Restlessness during sleep
Fatigue that isn’t related to working or playing hard
The notch just above the child’s Adam’s apple; when some children are having an asthma episode, this notch sinks in as they breathe in
Spaces between the ribs; these areas may sink in when the child breathes in
WHAT TO LISTEN FOR:Coughing when the child has no cold
Clearing of the throat a lot
Irregular Breathing
Wheezing, however light
Noisy, difficult breathing - Comment Feed for this Post
Go to the closist childrens hospital, find the pulmonary medicine docs… they will be able to get the best test for you. FOr children they can to pulmonary function test….. as long as they child can follow simple directions…. all they do is breath into a machine for a few seconds and it reads volumes in the lungs. after they do that the respiratory therapist will give them an albuterol breathing tx and have them breath again, comapring the results and if they are improved the child has asthma….
very simple procedure.. the gold standard for diagnostics