title: The pharmacologic management of childhood asthma.
abstract: Asthma treatment is based on the appropriate recognition and classification of children warranting treatment. Adequate treatment requires that children and parents have a good understanding of the disease and expectations for good control. Assessment requires a thorough history of symptoms, impairments of physical activity, past history of exacerbations, and understanding of triggering events. Therapy then must be appropriately implemented to reverse the symptoms and prevent future exacerbations. The approach in pediatrics is to be conservative, to use the safe and proven therapy, and to prevent the potential morbidity of the disease. These goals provide the rationale in childhood immunization. The literature suggests that the appropriate and conservative approach for children with persistent asthma, of any disease severity, is the use of low-dose inhaled corticosteroids that may be combined with an inhaled long-acting bronchodilator. This therapy is the most effective in reducing symptoms and exacerbations and preventing the potential mortality from the disease. It also allows children to be able to enjoy physical activity with their friends. Expectations should be high. Concerns about the potential for adverse effects should always be addressed proactively and should be balanced with the potential of adverse events from the disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98004, USA. econmed@msn.com
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Stempel
mesh_terms: D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001249:Asthma / Q000145:classification / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D018579:Patient Selection; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents