Signs and symptoms
The diagnosis of shortness of breath depends on the rate of breathing. To determine, if your child is actually short of breath, count the number of breaths per minute when the child is at rest. The average, normal rate of breathing for newborns is 40 breaths per minute; for one-year-olds, it is 30; and for those over eight years old it is 20. If the rate of breathing for your child at rest is double the normal rate, he or she is short of breath.
Your child’s fever may hinder your ability to judge whether respiration is normal. If your child seems to be short of breath and has a fever, allow two or three extra breaths per minute for each temperature degree above normal, or time the breathing after the temperature has returned to normal.
Home care
Except for air hunger caused by anxiety, no home treatment for shortness of breath should be attempted. Ask your doctor’s advice and see the section on Hyperventilation in this book.
• A fever increases a person’s rate of breathing. If the fever is treated with aspirin and the amount given is too much or given too often, the rate of breathing will increase even more. If your child who is taking aspirin becomes short of breath, double-check the dose of the aspirin to see if it’s too high.
• Rapid breathing while your child is resting often signals a serious problem. Contact your doctor promptly whenever it occurs.
Medical treatment
Your doctor will perform a complete examination paying particular attention to the lungs, heart, throat, epiglottis, and blood pressure, and ordering chest and neck X rays. Blood and urine tests will be ordered to determine if the underlying cause of the shortness of breath is diabetes. You may be asked whether your child has been exposed to poisonous gases, such as carbon monoxide, or whether the child is being treated with aspirin for some other health condition. The specific treatment of shortness of breath depends on its cause.
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