What to do in an emergency

Every 10 seconds, someone has a potentially life-threatening asthma attack. Use Asthma UK’s easy-to-follow emergency advice on what to do if you or someone you’re with has an asthma attack.

What to do in an asthma attack

1. Sit up straight – try to keep calm.
2. Take one puff of your reliever inhaler (usually blue) every 30-60 seconds, up to 10 puffs.
3. If you feel worse at any point OR you don’t feel better after 10 puffs, call 999 for an ambulance.
4. If the ambulance has not arrived after 10 minutes and your symptoms are not improving, repeat step 2.
5. If your symptoms are no better after repeating step 2, and the ambulance has still not arrived, contact 999 again immediately.

Important: this asthma attack advice does not apply to you if you use a MART inhaler. Get more information and advice about the MART regime by following the link at the bottom of the page.

Know the signs of an asthma attack

You’re having an asthma attack if:

• your blue reliever isn't helping, or you need to use it more than every four hours
• you're wheezing a lot, have a very tight chest, or you're coughing a lot
• you're breathless and find it difficult to walk or talk
• your breathing is getting faster, and it feels like you can't get your breath in properly

You may have all these signs and symptoms. Or you may have some of them. For example, you may not wheeze.

After an asthma attack

You need an urgent asthma review after having an attack. You should see a GP or asthma nurse within 48 hours of leaving the hospital, ideally on the same day if you did not need hospital treatment.

About 1 in 6 people treated in hospital for an asthma attack need hospital care again within two weeks. It's important to discuss how to reduce your risk of future attacks.