peak flow meter and how i feel

thought id post on behalf of my wife who is havving a bad time with her athma all of a sudden,been to casualty,had pred etc,what we dont understand is why is it that her peak flow reading does not seem to have much relationship to how she is feeling .is this normal?

[KateMoss]

Hello Garp,

sorry your wife hasn't been too well.

with some people peak flow readings are not always indicative of how they are feeling and how their asthma is behaving.

Also, when she has an asthma review - get them to check her peak flow technique just to be sure that she is doing it correctly. Just a thought.

I hope she is feeling better.

Kate

[Hidden]

Hi Garp,

Welcome to Asthma UK. I'm sorry to hear that your wife is struggling at the moment, I hope you'll both find that this board is a good source of information and support.

One note of warning - this board is for anyone affected by asthma, of any severity, but it does tend to attract people at the severe end of the spectrum in disproportionate numbers. You might read accounts of poor control, multiple medications, frequent hospital admissions and Intensive Care admissions. Pleasae don't be frightened or put off by this. Whilst unfortunately common on the boards, these sorts of experiences are rare overall in asthma. The vast majority of people with asthma can be completely or almost completely controlled, with little or no interference with their lives, once the right combination of medication is found.

In terms of your question about your wife's peak flow, Kate is absolutely right. Sometimes peak flow does not correlate very well with the degree of symptoms that someone is experiencing. It's important for the person to get to know their own symptoms and warning signs. I do hope that now your wife has been put on pred, things will start to pick up soon.

One other thing I need to mention - the Terms and Conditions of use of the website ask that you don't post from another user's username. If you and your wife both want to continue to post on the boards, can I ask that you create your own username?

Em H

(Moderator)

[Hidden]

same problem

Hi

I was interested to read this as I'm currently experiecing the same problem. I've just had to cut short a holiday to rural Ireland as while I was over there I was suffering shortness of breath, wheezing etc; my asthma was well-controlled before I went over there, (I normally take Seretide 125 but was taking Seretide 250 as I had this problem before on another holiday to Majorca a few years and so wanted to be prepared; I also hardly ever use Salbutamol and go the gym quite regularly). I saw a doctor in Ireland who prescribed me Prednisolone which helped a little but not much. It's been a lot better since I've been back in England today (probably as I'm away from whatever the trigger was, which I think may have been some sort of pollen in the area) but this evening had more tight-chestedness which wasn't much helped by my Salbutamol. So I called an ambulance for myself and the paramedic said my oxygen levels were very good (they strapped a machine to my finger which read this) and my peak flow is as normal (about 600). They gave me a nebuliser in the ambulance, which helped me a lot, then saw a doctor who has recommened my GP give me Singluair as he thinks this flare-up is more pollen allergy-related than asthma. It does feel strange to have a tight chest but have all the tests saying I am ok. I'm hoping it's just the aftermath of my asthma problems in Ireland and I'll return to normal soon. I am seeing my GP tomorrow and I'm going to ask for a referral to get this (possible) allergy problem looked at, as I have another short break aboad planned for next week which I'm unsure whether to go ahead with now, but I'm not sure who to be referred to? While I was waiting to be seen I was worried it was just psychological, as everything pointed to me being ok. The doctor I saw in A&E said my breathing sounded fine when he listened to my chest. I've have had panic attacks in the past but this doesn't feel the same at all, and it doesn't feel like it's just all in my mind. I'm finding breathing techniques helping a lot at the moment. Anyone with similar experience/advice I'd love to hear from you.

[Hidden]

I had bad asthma when I stayed in Dublin once, I put down to my hotels location close to the river. I Have been back many times and havent had a problem since as booked hotels on higher ground.