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“Empowering people through education about their disease, including their triggers, symptoms and available treatments enables patients and families to be in control of their illness." |
Most people with asthma will first show symptoms when they are young. However, asthma can develop at any age. Asthma symptoms are different from person to person and they can change over time. People with asthma often have one or more of these symptoms:
- wheezing
- chest tightness
- coughing
- feeling short of breath
Speak with your health care provider if you have any of these signs and symptoms. If you are 6 years and older, ask about spirometry (a simple breathing test) that helps diagnose and monitor asthma. Other breathing tests that can be used to diagnose asthma include peak expiratory flow (PEF) and challenge tests.
To learn more about breathing tests and to watch a video demonstration on spirometry visit our breathing test webpage.