title: Differential diagnosis of asthma.
abstract: Asthma tends to be diagnosed too easily by clinicians without sufficient consideration being given to alternative possibilities. Most asthma is obvious, mild and easy to treat. Deviations from this typical picture should be a signal to consider carefully other diagnoses. Age of onset, pattern of symptoms, sputum production, diurnal variations or the lack thereof, associated upper respiratory symptoms, abnormal physical signs, poor control on standard inhaler therapy and unusual flow volume loops are all pointers to non-asthma diagnoses.
authors.affiliation: Royal Brompton Hospital, Sydney Street, London SW3 6NP, UK.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rosenthal
mesh_terms: D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002648:Child; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D010808:Physical Examination; D013147:Spirometry