Wheezy cough in a non-wheezing asthmatic child

My daughter, 11, is heading for an exacerbation in her asthma. You know, you can just tell?! She usually takes 2 puffs clenil 50, and 2 puffs of serevent morning and night though a volumatic spacer. Normally on this dose her athma is well controlled and we have no problems. A couple of weeks ago she began with the cough I recognised as being her asthma flaring up and we upped her clenil to 3 puffs twice a day. Now she has a cold. Her peak flow is dropping and there is a lot more coughing. The thing that puzzles me, however, is that she isn't a wheezy asthmatic. The only wheeze I've ever heard from her was back when she was first diagnosed and I believe that was partly due to an allergic reaction to the domestic rats we had as pets then. But this cough is very wheezy. She says she feels fine in herself (aside of the cold making her miserable) but that her chest feels wheezy. When she coughs you can really hear it!

This is an entirely new situation for me. I've taken her clenil up to four twice a day and it seems a good idea with the wheezing to give to her 4 hourly ventolin on top. But why would there suddenly be this wheezing? Any ideas?

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Hiya Jacquimac,

We had this with our lad - right after I'd joined in a discussion on here about non-wheezing asthmatics! Ain't that just kids though?? I find that with my lad, that his ""presentation"" changes as he grows. He never used to cough or wheeze, but now he does both. We too are heading for a flare up after 6 months or so of nothing - maybe there's something in the air......it's getting noticeabley colder and damper, adn also it has been back to school time so lots of lovely new bugs about.

Not sure this helps you though :O)

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Hi Wheels

It certainly the time of year when we first start hitting the GP for antibiotics and oral steroids:~/ We're just home from seeing the out of hours chap who took pity and gave us a prescription for both incase they are needed. For once, her peak flow was low while we were there. Normally we get a fantastic peak flow reading at the doctors with no wheeze and we are summarily dismissed. Today even the wheeze was in evidence which has never happened before! I'm sorry if I sound as though I'm making that sound like a good thing because clearly it isn't but we get so used to taking her to be seen and only those that really know her and her asthma actually treating her effectively it all feels very strange.