Children/Babies with Asthma

My daughter was diagnosed with Asthma in January of 08 and will go tomorrow for follow-up (she goes every 3-4 months).  At her last appt they lowered her dose of Flovent and they said they were hopeful she will have outgrown this by the age of two which she will be next month.  My guess is tomorrow they will lower her dose even more.

My question is does anyone have children who have been taken off flovent or another ashtma drug?  She is also on 15mg of Prevacid a day - for asthma related reflux - and I am hoping they stop this as well - I am just looking to see how she may react when these medications are stopped.  I really want her off them - she goes through enough and I would rather just have a rescue inhaler for flareups not an everyday use....

She goes to the best doctors at Children's Hospital of PHiladelphia so I am confident they are doing what needs to be done but at the same time she was too young for any tests last year and this was all medicated because of 4 "episodes" she had of fainting/seizure/turning blue.  They ruled Ashma after all neurology and cardiology tests were normal.

[peekawho]

I'd say to post your question either on the expert or community Asthma forum, but it looks like no one answers questions in either place very much.

I'm with you, they'll probably lower her dose and as she gets older and can cooperate with formal testing, they might be able to get her off and onto rescue inhalers.  I'm sure that CHOP is giving her the best care available in the country.  

Good luck!  I remember her situation, very scary.

[2ndBaby]

Eventually she'll do the PFT (pulminary function test) for that asthma dx.  But to do that she has to be able to willfully control her breath in a sustained manner.  Our doctor said the minimum age for this test to be accurate is 6.  My dd's pulmanologist also tested her for cystic fibrosis at her first visit...it is a non-evasive sweat test.  

I would rather give my dd preventative meds than rescue meds right now.  Whenever she does experience an episode she has to take high doses of oral steroids, which can negatively impact children's growth.  We made it through 2+ years of twice-daily nebulizer treatments and now manage it with an Advair inhaler.  We still hope she'll outgrow it, too.  It started around age 3 and she is now 7.

Good luck to you and your child.