Cystic Fibrosis

Question

My daughter is 6 years old and since three years she has complaints that look a lot like cystic fibrosis. She has it the whole year through from October till July. During the summer months she has no problems whatsoever. Is it also the case that people with CF have less problems during the summer months ?

Answer

You ask a very specific question about the health of your six year old daughter. You seem somewhat worried that your daughter may suffer from Cystic Fibrosis. To answer this question we refer you to a doctor.
Your general question “do people with CF have less complaints during the summer months” we can answer.
Very typical for young children is that they suffer from viral infections during the autumn and winter period. This mainly concerns infections of the airways. Most young children will thus be more often sick during winter and autumn than during the summer. Since viral airway infections are the main trigger of asthma symptoms in young children, also children with asthma will present with more symptoms during the autumn and winter than during the summer. The same is the case in children have a problem of their immunity. Also in other chronic diseases and in children with cystic fibrosis the seasonal pattern is there but it is less obvious. The symptoms of cough and airway infection do not disappear in the summer. But even in children with for instance CF viral infections are often the trigger to start exacerbation of infection. That’s why also for them the autumn and winter will be more problematic than the summer. Whether complaints disappear in the summer or not is thus not a reliable test to check if somebody would be suffering from cystic fibrosis. A sweat test is the first diagnostic test to be done if one worries about cystic fibrosis. We thus suggest that you discuss your concern with your doctor. He will determine whether your child needs further testing.

Kind regards
Professor Dr. K. De Boeck

14.09.2010