Help with asthma? Please?

[colditzmum]

One of my friends has a nearly 3 year old son with asthma. He takes flixinase, salbutamol 100 microgram, fluticasone 125 micrograms, trimethoprim 5 ml x2 per day.

He is waking up with an asthma cough every morning. He has only just started the fluticasone inhaler, he was on becatide.

She dampwipes his whole bedroom every day, she hoovers his mattress once a week, and it doesn't seem to be working. His asthma seems to be clearing whenever he is out of the house, but even at my house (which I must admit is hardly ever dusted, and NEVER dampwiped) his asthma is clearer than when at home. We both have a cat, he jumps all over my sofa when he is here, which I don't mind, and the dust really flies. No asthma here, ever. Yet at home, there is hardly any dust, his mum keeps the place immaculate, but he has the most horrendous asthma attacks.

Does anyone have any ideas on what this could be caused by and what she can do to prevent these attacks?

Could it be mould? I don't mean she has a serious damp problem, but fungal spores are invisible to the naked eye and some are very toxic. She would be totally unaware of their presence. It would explain why no matter how much she wipes and cleans she will not get rid of them. Perhaps she needs to look into getting that checked out?

Also, my ashtma is triggered by a food allergy to tomatoes mainly. Does he ever eat anything whilst in your house?

He needs a blood test to check for all the common allergens, then a look more indepth at things present in the environment at home that are causing the attacks. How awful for them both! Has he had blood tests before to check for allergies?

He has had some blood tests done that show that he could be allergic to eggs and cats, and there could be a damp problem. He doesn't react to my cat at all, and he eats his meals here quite a lot.

This has only been a real problem since December, so she can't work out what has changed since then. I think you definatly have a point with the damp, she4 knows she has a damp problem, but can this really have only become an issue since December?

Thanks for replying, I have a very worried, depressed, pregant friend on the end of the phone right now!