Teen with Bronchiectasis

[quebec]

I have a teenage daughter with Bronchiectasis. She’s underweight and her physical development is slower than expected. She’s also developed asthma since she started puberty. Is this the pattern to expect for children growing up with Bronchiectasis?

[Hidden]

Hi there. There are several of us on this sight who grew up with bronchiectasis. I was fortunate compared to your daughter because I did not develop asthma and I have a healthy immune system. I was very under weight as a young child but by my teens I was normal weight. The secret with all of these conditions is management. It is a lifelong routine and effort but no worse than living with type 1 diabetes as my 14 yr old grandaughter does.

A combination of self managemet, keeping the lungs clear by emptying them scrupulously, exercise, good food and avoiding other people's germs, and the right doctors who are experts in their field ( bronch and asthma require their own specialusts). The right drug regime is also very important and only the true specialists are experienced enough. I am now 69 and have had a very normal life. My Mother believed in tough love and never molly coddled me.

I hope that this helps a bit and that your daughter avoids too many of those exacerbations.

[quebec in reply to Hidden]

Thank you for your reply. We’re sticking with physio, healthy food, and exercise when her asthma is not too bad. She is under a children’s bronch specialist.I think the symptom pattern has changed as she moves through puberty and wondered if that’s normal.

[Hidden in reply to quebec]

It's hard for me to remember but I think that it is possible, especially as regards the asthma.