Treating a little girl with breathing difficulties

The Lake Clinic takes healthcare by boat to remote floating communities on the Tonle Sap Lake in Cambodia.

Julie Debuire (a volunteer on the clinic) describes what is going on in the photo:' This little girl aged around 6 years came to clinic on the lake at Peng Bang. She had been having breathing difficulties for 5 days following a viral upper respiratory tract infection. On examination, she had respiratory distress with indrawing of the rib muscles as can be seen in the picture, and wheeze. She was unable to manage an inhaler, so Sovann, our clinic nurse, used a plastic bottle and bandage to make a spacer device. After using this, there was a rapid improvement, and the patient was able to leave after a period of observation. The parents were shown how to use the inhaler and spacer at home. A week later, the mother reported she was well and had used the inhaler for 3 days. She has returned to school and to helping her parents with fishing. They will be confident to use the spacer and inhaler again if she has further episodes.'

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