Asthma info needed please.

[pantshavenames]

DS (4.5) has had intermittent (once a year maybe) asthma attacks that lasted about 15 min of struggling for breath. After the last one just before Christmas we took him to the doctor and were given an inhaler for him. Last night he woke up really breathless and upset so we tried to get him to take a dose. He seemed to suck in but it didn't seem to make much difference and he was really bad for at least an hour even after another go of the inhaler. This morning he's still wheezy and slightly breathless.
I don't know anything about asthma really and because it's never really been a problem the severity of last night took me and DH by suprise.. so really, just a few questions.. how long are attacks likely to last? how long does it take to recover from one? should I be taking him to the doctors today? should I have taken him to A&E last night? and can anyone recommend a good website for me to look at?
TIA

Hi, I have asthma and so does my DS.

When he was 11 months old he had his 1st 'attack'. He spent 3 days in hospital having hourly nebulisers.

His second time was this time last year, only 1 night in hospital this time. As they get bigger, they respond to the drugs better.

If they're noticeably wheezing, straight onto the doctor. If it's nightime, they should be straight around to you as a priority case.

I'm guessing you have a spacer for your DS? These are great and ensure that even if they're very tight that at least some of the salbutamol is going to get to where it needs to be. The trouble with asthma is, although the drugs are brilliant and work almost instantly, you need to be able to breath them into your lungs suffieciently for them to work. Therefore, if you're already at the point where you're struggling to breath, chances are you're not going to get enough of the drug into your system to make a difference.

Always call or take your DS to the doctor, they should see him straight away for suspected asthma attacks. They should also have a nebuliser at the surgery. With small children, you can never tell how it's going to go. It can very quickly get worse or get better. I know from experience that they really don't mind on the occasions that they're showing signs of having an attack but respond quickly to the medication and no intervention by the doctor is required after all. Better to be safe with asthma.

The blue inhalers (salbutamol) have an unfortunate side effect where if you take too much, they increase your heart rate and give you the jitters. So if you've given several blasts and they're still struggling - coughing, wheezing, not talking then get them to the doctor straight away.

I really hope this is helpful for you.

Do you have a spacer? If so, the effect should be more or less instantaneous - the variation is how long it lasts. If you do have one and it still isn't working, then definitely head back to docs ASAP.

All he has is a salbutamol inhaler, what's a spacer? I think that was part of the problem last night in that he was too upset and breathless to use the inhaler properly because there certainly wasn't a instant improvement, far from it.
He's got an appt at the doctors at 11 today so hopefully we'll get things explained to us a little more clearly. we were probably a little blase last time as it happened so infrequently and so mildly but if it's going to be like last night we need to be a little more on the ball
Thanks for your advice. Mamii your experience sounds absolutely terrifying, I'm glad to hear it seems to be getting better.

A spacer is a device to allow a small child to more easily take their medication. It can be difficult, even for an adult, to time pressing the inhaler with the indrawn breath and the spacer 'holds' the medication for the child to breathe in.

There are a number of different types of spacer - the GP should be able to prescribe one for him. If there is an asthma clinic/nurse at your GP surgery, they may well have the different types so you can have a look and a play and see what suits you best. I'm surprised, TBH, that your DS was prescribed an inhaler without a spacer anyway. Hope it goes well at the GP today.

Definitely ask the GP for one - almost no chance an upset 4.5yo is going to be able to concentrate on using the inhaler effectively. I am astonished that you were given an inhaler without one for him. GP's are sometimes clueless - ask about the practice asthma nurse - they are so good, IME.

No problem at all. I was completely terrified when DS had his attacks. I only cried once he was getting better and I knew he was okay.

A spacer is just a mask with a chamber attached to it. You pump the salbutamol into the chamber(important to shake it first to mix the gas and the medication together).

They can then just breath normally and the medication goes into their windpipe/lungs properly. It's very hard for such little ones to breath in the blast from an inhaler without having a spacer to help them.

The GP should offer to refer you to a specialist at the hospital. There are non-steriod preventative medications available. These really help.

It does mean that when he get's a cold, or the cold weather, doing building work, painting, using air fresheners, fragranced candles. You'll just need to try and watch out to see if there is a specific trigger for the asthma. Once you pinpoint it, it's far easier to manage.

Good luck.

Sorry, my post crossed with the others - now you have loads of explainations of a spacer! Good luck today. I would still expect after recurring and a severe asthma attack that you should be referred to a specialist. Our specialist has been wonderful.

thanks for all your advice. The doctor he saw today also seemed surprised he had no spacer (despite the prescription being given by a doctor in the same practice ffs). He now has a spacer and inhaler to go with it and the GP said that for the next month he should use the inhaler 4 times a day and then we need to go back to the GP to see if that has made things better. He said that there was no real way of checking whether it is asthma untill he is big enough to succesfully do a peak flow test (I guess unless we have to take him to see someone in the middle of an attack). He's been chesty and fragile today but that might be as much from the really disrupted sleep. I've tried him on the spacer and I can see that that will make it muich easier to get the medicine down and hopefully this month will get him so used to it that if he does need it in the night it won't be so intimidating.

I really hope we all get a good night's sleep.

pantshavenames - I used to have to hold DD (now 3) down to get her to use the inhaler/spacer - then DH 'sold' it to her and now she is perfectly happy to do it. Trouble is, I don't know what he did, because all he does when I ask is to smile smugly .

However, at 4.5 and having tried the hard way with no spacer, I am sure your DS will find it a doddle.

Good luck.

my ds(3yrs) also has asthma problems that we are also on a steep learning curve about as only just new to all this.
He is Fireman Sam crazy so I just hit on the idea that the spacer is a Fireman Sam mask and we play at fighting fires. When that does not work its is total bribery with a biscuit