Personal Viral Induced Wheeze Action Plan
Advice for professionals
If you / your child is:
- Too breathless to talk / eat or drink
- Has blue lips
- Having symptoms of cough/wheeze or breathlessness which are getting worse despite treatment
- Confused and drowsy
Ring 999 for immediate help.
Give 10 puffs of blue (salbutamol) reliever inhaler every 10 minutes until ambulance arrives.
Keep child in upright position and reassure them.
If you / your child is:
- Wheezing and breathless and the reliever treatment is not lasting 4 hours
- Having day-time and night-time symptoms of cough or wheeze
- Too breathless to run and play
Immediately contact your GP and make an appointment for your child to be seen that day face to face.
Increase blue (salbutamol) reliever inhaler 6-10 puffs every 4 hours
If your child’s breathing is not laboured or fast and he/she is able to continue their normal day to day activities
Give 2-5 puffs blue (salbutamol) reliever inhaler every 4 hours until symptoms improve.
This guidance has been reviewed and adapted by healthcare professionals across Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin with consent from the Hampshire development groups.
Choose appropriate sized spacer with mask (or mouthpiece if child is over 3 years with good technique and is not significantly short of breath)
- Shake the inhaler well and remove cap
- Fit the inhaler into the opening at the end of the spacer
- Place mask over the child’s face ensuring a good seal
- Press the inhaler once and allow the child to take 5 slow tidal breaths between each dose
- Remove the inhaler and shake between every puff
Repeat steps 2 – 5 for subsequent doses
Plastic spacers should be washed before 1st use and every month as per manufacturer’s guidelines
For videos on using your child’s inhaler and spacer correctly see goo.gl/235DQf 
No, not necessarily. This is a different condition from asthma, although a few children do go on to develop asthma.
Children with asthma:
- Are often wheezy, even when they do not have a cough or cold
- Usually have a family history of asthma and allergy
- Are generally more breathless than their friends when they run around or become wheezy on exercise.
- Often have a regular night time cough
If you are worried that your child has asthma, you should make an appointment to see your GP or GP asthma nurse.
Although your child has not been diagnosed with asthma, your GP asthma nurse will usually be happy to review children with viral induced wheeze. If your child has been discharged from hospital, you should arrange for them to be seen in the next 48 hours by your GP or GP practice nurse. You should arrange for them to be reviewed by your GP if they continue to have lots of problems with wheeze once they have recovered from their cold.