Has my baby got Asthma??

Hello hoping someone could shed some light my daughter Ava is 8 month and has always had a little wheeze from time to time since she was born. 2 months ago she was admitted to hospital with what they diagnosed as bronchiolitis. 4 weeks later she was admitted again and again they said it was acute bronchiolitis. She was on oxygen for 5 days, fed via a tube which was very distressing so she had to be put on a drip. Both these occasions she had cold symptoms which suggested a viral chest infection. She recovered from the last occasion but a week later I'm needing to use the inhaler they prescribed as she becomes wheezy, short of breath and draws in her chest quite deeply. I've taken her to the docs again this morning and have finally got a referal to a paeditrition (sp) after taking her 20 plus times. She hasn't any other symptoms and fine in herself. Sorry for long post but does anyone think this could be asthma? I have bought a dehumidifier but don't think it's beneficial to her??? Any advice or personal experiences wud be great xxx

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Hi

I am not sure if this will help but it does seem that infant wheezing is very common and doesn't necessarily mean that your baby has asthma. My son had bronchiolitis at 9 months and since then has had a dozen or so attacks of wheezing (about half of which have put him in hospital). The wheezing always comes on with a cold. We have been advised that it may be something he grows out of or it may be asthma. The consultant likened it to bronchitis. Whatever it is, we have had to go down the route of preventer and reliever inhalers with the occasional dose of oral steroids. The reliever definitely works but whether the preventer makes much difference I do not know.

I think you will find that infant wheezing is very common and especially so in September. I have met a lot of people whose children have had these problems and they seem to grow out of it by age three or four.

Unfortuately the way in which children like this are treated in hospital is a bit hit or miss. We have had great care from GP and one A&E we visited but just this week, he was treated with complete indifference. My experience is that you need to talk to your GP and get a plan together if the problem persists and learn as much as you can. You must question the hospital doctors and trust your instincts.