He asthma It is a very common respiratory disease in childhood. Although it affects all ages it is more common to see it in younger children. Many cases of asthma are improving over time, with the majority becoming fully resolved over time. It is one of the forms of manifestation of allergy in babies.
It is a disease in which there is a chronic inflammation of the airways of the child. It usually occurs in the form of episodes (called "exacerbations") in which the child has sudden worsening of this inflammation. Generally these episodes are triggered by certain external factors, such as exposure to substances to which the child is allergic.
The biggest problem with asthma is that it can affect the normal life of the child, although fortunately this only happens in a few cases. Another problem is that its diagnosis can be complicated in children under 5 years, in which the symptoms can be very atypical and difficult to relate to this process.
One of the most frequent causes of asthma are allergic processes, in which we will focus on these posts.
In the first part of the post we will focus on the causes and symptoms that this picture can produce. In the second part, the diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of the condition will be treated.
Causes of asthma in babies
The exact cause of asthma remains unknown, although it seems that there are genetic factors that predispose to suffer, along with environmental factors, which trigger or favor the disease.
In the case of children with allergy there would be a genetic component that predisposes to suffer from the allergy. The environmental factor that would trigger asthma would be those known as "allergens", that is, the substances that produce the reaction. These can be very varied. Some of the most frequent are pollens and dust mites, but they can be almost any substance found in the environment.
This is important because although the child has a clear genetic predisposition, it is sometimes possible to reverse the disease only by controlling exposure to these factors that trigger the allergy. This is relatively easy when the allergen is known and this is avoidable. However, in other cases, such as in dust mite allergy, avoiding exposure can be much more complicated.
Asthma Symptoms
The best known of asthma in children and babies are the respiratory distress episodes. These episodes have a series of very characteristic symptoms, which make them easily recognizable even in younger children.
Among these symptoms are wheezing (noises of whistles or whistles in the chest when the air is expelled), elongated breathing (since there is difficulty in the exit of the air) and signs of respiratory distress (such as agitated breathing or the ribs being marked in the child's chest). They are usually related to the child's exposure to the substance to which he is allergic.
These acute episodes may have varying degrees of severity, from mild to severe. Moderate or severe cases are those in which the child has the highest number and intensity of wheezing and striking signs of respiratory distress.
Sometimes, in those who are already serious, wheezing may not be heard, but this is because very little air enters and leaves the child's lungs, which is a sign of gravity. A moderate or severe asthma episode should always be evaluated in an emergency department.
On other occasions the child may have episodes of dry and very persistent cough, especially at night, which can sometimes be confused with other processes. One of the risks of this cough is that sometimes asthma is not thought of as the pathology that may be causing it, so the diagnosis can be delayed.
In severe cases that are not treated correctly the child may have serious complications. For this reason it is very important that children with asthma, especially allergic base, are very controlled by the Pediatrician and sometimes by the Allergist. This control, together with the training of parents in the management of the disease, greatly improves the quality of life and prognosis of these children.
