If your child's asthma symptoms are severe, your family doctor or pediatrician may refer your child to see an asthma specialist.
The doctor will want your child to take just the right amount and type of medication needed to control his or her asthma. This will help prevent side effects.
Based on your record of how well your child's current medications seem to control signs and symptoms, your child's doctor may "step up" treatment to a higher dose or add another type of medication. If your child's asthma is well controlled, the doctor may "step down" treatment by reducing your child's medications. This is known as the stepwise approach to asthma treatment.
Certain medications aren't specifically approved for use in children by the Food and Drug Administration, but the doctor may prescribe them based on his or her judgment of what's likely to work best for your child.