Diagnosing Asthma in Young Children: Current Research & Recommendations

Abstract 

Asthma is the leading pediatric chronic illness in the United States, and there has been a steady increase in the incidence of asthma in children younger than 6 years of age. Early intervention for asthma decreases morbidity, controls health care costs, and may even preserve lung function. Asthma is difficult to diagnose in young children and is under-diagnosed in this population. It is important for primary care nurse practitioners to diagnose asthma in young children in a timely manner so that therapy can be initiated. This article reviews current recommendations for diagnosing asthma in young children and highlights new and promising diagnostic tools for asthma.

Key Words: Asthma, asthma predictive index, pulmonary function tests, induced sputum, fractional exhaled nitric oxide, exhaled breath condensate