Asthma Symptoms Help Make an Asthma Diagnosis

By Kathleen MacNaughton, R.N., About.com Guide to Asthma

Determining patterns of asthma symptoms is essential to making an asthma diagnosis. Individual asthma symptoms can be similar to those of other conditions, so looking at recurrent causes and frequency of asthma symptoms can help your doctor decide if you have asthma or something else.

1. How Asthma Is Diagnosed
2. Track Your Symptoms to Help Your Doctor
3. Testing That Can Help Make an Asthma Diagnosis

How Asthma Is Diagnosed

Diagnosing asthma is a fairly straightforward process for a doctor, who uses a combination of medical history, symptoms and testing to decide if a person with breathing problems actually has asthma.

• Understanding an Asthma Diagnosis Process
• Asthma Risk Factors - Are You at Risk?
• Wheezing - A Hallmark Symptom of Asthma

• Chronic Cough - Is it Asthma?
• More Asthma Symptoms
• Symptom Checker - Is It Asthma?

Track Your Symptoms to Help Your Doctor

When do you have symptoms? How is your breathing affected? Tracking these, and other factors, can help a doctor zero in on an asthma diagnosis or figure out of something else might be going on.

• Tracking Your Asthma Symptoms
• Identifying Your Possible Triggers
• Gather More Evidence With a Peak Flow Meter
• Tell Your Doctor How You're Feeling & What You're Finding

Testing That Can Help Make an Asthma Diagnosis

Your doctor can get a fairly good idea what's going on by exploring family / medical history and evaluating your symptoms. Further testing can help confirm the asthma diagnosis and classify your level of asthma.

• Allergy Testing for Asthma
• Spirometry Testing
• Pulmonary Function Tests
• Chest X-Rays for Diagnosing Asthma