A new study published in this month's Pediatrics reveals that parents are hesitant to give their children potentially life-changing asthma medications because they are not convinced they're needed and they are fearful of potential side effects. In fact, only about half of all prescribed preventive asthma medications were taken as directed.... Read more
Yesterday the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) issued its first comprehensive update of the clinical guidelines for the diagnosis and management of asthma in 10 years. The revision emphasizes prevention -- patients are urged to be aware of daily symptoms, their specific triggers and effective use of medications so... Read more
My yearly routine includes talking to school staff about my son's asthma, filling out the appropriate forms and double-checking where his meds would be stored. It is a back-to-school challenge that can leave parents, not the students, breathless! Information from a recent American Lung Association (ALA) online survey of parents of... Read more
My sister is busy shopping for school supplies for her three elementary-aged kids. School starts in less than three weeks. And what am I doing? Still reveling in the fact that the block Fourth of July party went so well! Back in "my day" kids didn't start school until after Labor Day, but there's one group of dedicated... Read more
It was a report I read with mixed feelings. The intellectual part of my brain cheered and said, "Now that's progress!" The lay-the-guilt-on-me part of every mother's brain dredged up feelings that were echoed by parent after parent in the educational support group I started 25 years ago. We all knew there was a genetic component... Read more
