Abstract
This is a case report of fatal asthma in a 19-year-old college student written from the perspective of her father to raise the awareness of sudden fatal asthma and the importance of a current emergency action plan. She was diagnosed with asthma when she was 9 years of age. At the time she had her sudden severe fatal episode of asthma, her brother awakened her parents abruptly with a call for help. She was rushed to the hospital by car. On the way to the hospital she lost consciousness and her brother began cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). At the hospital cardiac function was restored, but she remained in a coma for several days on ventilatory support. On the fourth day she had evidence of cerebral swelling, and intracranial pressure monitoring was initiated. On the 10th day after her sudden severe asthma, "brain death" was declared and she was removed from ventilatory support. (Pediatr Asthma Allergy Immunol 2000;14[4]:341–342.)
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.