Asthma / Consultation template
New asthma patient
First assessment, built around the objective test that confirms the diagnosis and the four things that predict the next attack.
- 1Referred with
- 2Symptoms
- 3Duration and pattern
- 4Diurnal variation and night waking
- 5Better away from work or on holiday
- 6Atopy
- 7Nasal symptoms and sense of smell
- 8Courses of oral steroids in the last 12…
- 9Attendances at A and E in the last 12 mo…
- 10Hospital admissions, ever, and any HDU o…
- 11Best ever peak flow, and when
- 12Preventer
- 13Reliever
- 14Inhaler technique observed today
- 15Adherence, by prescription collection wh…
- 16Spacer in use
and 24 more, in the block below.
Referred with: [] History: Symptoms: [wheeze, breathlessness, chest tightness, cough] Duration and pattern: [] Diurnal variation and night waking: [nights per week] Triggers: [exercise, cold air, pollen, animals, dust, aspirin or NSAIDs, work] Better away from work or on holiday: [yes, no or not applicable] Atopy: [eczema, hay fever, food allergy] Nasal symptoms and sense of smell: [] Attack history: Courses of oral steroids in the last 12 months: [] Attendances at A and E in the last 12 months: [] Hospital admissions, ever, and any HDU or ITU care: [] Best ever peak flow, and when: [] Current treatment and how it is actually taken: Preventer: [drug, device, dose, doses per day] Reliever: [drug, and doses used per week] Inhaler technique observed today: [adequate or the specific error seen] Adherence, by prescription collection where available: [collections in last 12 months] Spacer in use: [yes or no] Other: Smoking and vaping: [] Occupation and exposures: [] Reflux, nasal polyps, obesity, anxiety or depression: [] Beta blockers, aspirin or NSAIDs: [] Height [] cm Weight [] kg BMI [] Objective tests: Blood eosinophils [] x10^9/L FeNO [] ppb Spirometry FEV1 [] L ([]%), FVC [] L ([]%), ratio []% Bronchodilator reversibility: [change in FEV1 in ml and %] Peak flow diary: [amplitude per cent mean over two weeks] Total IgE and specific IgE or skin prick: [] Chest x-ray: [] Impression: [asthma confirmed on which test, or diagnosis not yet established] Plan: 1. [] 2. Inhaler technique checked and spacer issued: [] 3. Written personalised asthma action plan given: [yes] 4. Trigger and adherence discussion: [] 5. Review in [] weeks with [test or diary]
How to use it
The diagnosis is made on a test, not on a story, and the test is easiest to get right before treatment starts: a normal FeNO and normal eosinophils in someone already on inhaled steroids proves very little. Objective confirmation follows the order in the joint pathway — blood eosinophils or FeNO first, then bronchodilator reversibility, then two weeks of peak flow variability, then bronchial challenge — and the block leaves a line for each so it is clear which one was used. The "better away from work" line takes one second and is the only question that finds occupational asthma, which is worth finding while the person still has the job. The attack-history block earns its place because previous oral steroid courses, an admission, and any HDU or ITU care are the strongest predictors of the next attack, whatever today's spirometry shows.
Why it says that
None of this is in the copied text. It is here so you can check the block against its source, and change it when the source changes.
- NICE/BTS/SIGN NG245 - Asthma: diagnosis, monitoring and chronic asthma management Adults 16 and over: diagnose on blood eosinophils above the local reference range or FeNO 50 ppb or more; if not confirmed, bronchodilator reversibility (FEV1 rise of 12% and 200 ml, or 10% of predicted); if unavailable, peak flow variability of 20% or more over two weeks; then bronchial challenge.
- BTS/NICE/SIGN NG244 - Asthma pathway The pathway view of the same recommendations, useful in clinic.
- GINA global strategy for asthma management and prevention The international counterpart, and the source of the position that no adult should be treated with a short-acting beta agonist alone.
- National Review of Asthma Deaths (RCP, 2014) Why the attack history and the action plan are in the template rather than in the notes: most of the people who died had none of it recorded.
Trials behind it
- SYGMA 1 2018 As-needed ICS/formoterol beat reliever alone on symptoms and exacerbations, but lost to daily ICS on symptom control
- SYGMA 2 2018 As-needed ICS/formoterol matched daily ICS for exacerbations on a quarter of the steroid dose
- START 2003 Low-dose daily budesonide nearly halved severe exacerbations in mild asthma
Records on respiratorytrials.org.