Difficulty breathing

Trouble breathing can become dangerous quickly. If you are not sure how bad it is, treat it as an emergency and get help now.

Get emergency help now if any of these are true

Lips, tongue, face or fingernails look blue, grey or very pale
Too breathless to speak a full sentence, or can only say one or two words
Gasping, choking, or making a high-pitched noise when breathing in
Chest pain, or pain spreading to the arm, neck or jaw
Sudden breathlessness with pain when breathing in, or coughing up blood
Swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, a spreading rash, or feeling faint after a sting, food or medicine
Breathing very fast (more than 30 breaths a minute), or a child pulling in the skin between the ribs
Confused, very drowsy, hard to wake, or has fainted
An inhaler or usual medicine is not helping, or is needed again within a few hours

If you are unsure, treat it as an emergency. Find your country's emergency number.

See a health worker or doctor today if

Breathlessness with fever, cough or chills
New or worse breathlessness when walking, washing or lying flat
Waking at night short of breath, or needing extra pillows to breathe
Ankles or legs swelling along with breathlessness
You are pregnant, or recently gave birth, and feel newly short of breath
You have asthma, heart disease, sickle cell disease, HIV or TB and your breathing has changed

If it gets worse, or does not get better

If breathing gets harder, faster or noisier at any point, call emergency services — do not wait to be seen.
Do not lie flat. Sit upright and loosen tight clothing while you wait for help.
If someone is with you, ask them to stay with you and to make the call if you cannot speak.
If your breathing improves but comes back, you still need to be checked the same day.

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