Wheezing is a high-pitched, whistling sound that occurs when air travels through tightened airways in the chest, according to MayoClinic.com. In most cases, wheezing can be heard when the airways collapse upon exhaling. If your infant is wheezing, you might wonder if he has asthma. Whether or not your infant has asthma, your family doctor can assess your infant's breathing and treat the constricted airways that are causing the wheezing.
Asthma
Asthma, a chronic lung disease, causes the airways to swell, tighten and create excess mucus, according to KidsHealth, a part of the Nemours Foundation. Children under age 5---particularly infants---are more difficult to diagnose with asthma because they get other conditions that produce similar symptoms. However, your infant may have asthma if her breathing is louder than normal or faster than 40 to 60 breaths per minute, if she coughs frequently or her coughing worsens after she actively plays or if she coughs and has clear mucus and a runny nose caused by hay fever, according to MayoClinic.com.
Other Causes
One condition that often mimics asthma in infants is bronchiolitis, which usually occurs after a viral infection such as respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, according to KidsHealth. Infants are more susceptible to wheezing after this type of illness because their airways are so tiny that they can become blocked more easily than airways of older children, according to MayoClinic.com. Less common causes of wheezing in infants are: food or a foreign object inhaled into the lungs, underdeveloped airways and cystic fibrosis.
Risk Factors for Asthma
Your infant's wheezing is more likely to be caused by asthma if his wheezing doesn't subside or if it frequently returns, if you or your partner has allergies, asthma or eczema, or if your baby has an allergy, according to MayoClinic.com. He might also be more prone to developing asthma later in life if he ever has bronchiolitis, says KidsHealth, but asthma is just correlated with it, not necessarily caused by it.
Diagnosis
Talk to the doctor if your infant is wheezing. The doctor may not be able to diagnose asthma in your infant at such an early age, and he may also have trouble measuring your infant's lung function because the test involves patient cooperation, according to KidsHealth. However, if you tell the doctor about any family history of sinus problems, allergies and asthma, and if the doctor observes your baby's symptoms over time, he should be able to assess whether the symptoms are likely caused by asthma.
Treatment
Whether or not the doctor diagnoses your infant with asthma right away, he might give your baby a trial run of asthma medication to determine whether it helps reduce the wheezing, says KidsHealth. Your infant may need to take asthma medication on a regular basis or only when she's wheezing. Chances are if the doctor gives your infant asthma medication, he will also give you a device such as a nebulizer, which dispenses a metered dose of medication to your infant through mist.
