One of the best ways to manage asthma, besides avoiding triggers, is to make sure that your child takes his or her medicine as it's been prescribed. The effect of skipping medication will vary depending on what kind it is.

Controller Medications

What they do:

Also called preventive, or maintenance medications, controller medicines work over time to reduce airway inflammation and help prevent asthma symptoms from occurring. Your child will need to take these medicines regularly, even if he or she is feeling fine.

If your child skips one or more doses:

Although skipping a dose appears to have no immediate effect, it allows the lungs to slowly get more irritated, putting your child at increased risk of an asthma flare-up.

When taking controller medicine as directed, your child may be better able to tolerate triggers, such as a cold or tobacco smoke, without getting a flare-up. But if your child has not been taking the controller medicine, his or her lungs won't be functioning as well and these irritants can cause an asthma flare-up.

Rescue Medications

What they do:

Also called quick-relief or fast-acting medications, rescue medicines work immediately to handle asthma symptoms when they occur. These types of medicines are often inhaled directly into the lungs, where they open up the airways and relieve symptoms such as wheezing, coughing, and shortness of breath, often within minutes.

If your child skips one or more doses:

If your child doesn't use his or her rescue medications during an asthma flare-up, the airways can continue to tighten until the child ends up in the emergency department. So it's important for your child to always have his or her rescue medication available and for your child to take it as directed by the doctor.

To help ensure that your child takes asthma medications appropriately, involve him or her in the asthma treatment. Explain how the medicines work and how much your child needs to take. Having an asthma action plan can help both of you learn what you need to know.

Also, stress these two key concepts with your child:

• Your child should take controller medication as directed, even when he or she is feeling well.
• You should keep rescue medication on hand, no matter where your child is.

You can help by prompting your child to take controller medications and reminding him or her to take rescue medication along when leaving the house. You can also help by making sure your child doesn't run out of medicine.

Resist the temptation to adjust medication dosages above or below the prescribed amounts. If you're noticing that your child seems to be doing better or worse, talk with the doctor about whether changes are needed. Also be sure to talk with the doctor if side effects are a concern. He or she may be able to adjust the dosage or prescribe a different medication.

Reviewed by: Elana Pearl Ben-Joseph, MD
Date reviewed: May 2007