Despite all the uncertainties in the wake of the teachers鈥� strike, there is one prediction, unfortunately, we can make with some confidence. Now that our kids have finally returned, there will be an almost immediate spike in asthma attacks.
About one in 10 kids have the disease. Until recently, it was one of the leading causes of hospitalization in school-age children. While outcomes have significantly improved in recent years 鈥� more on this in a moment 鈥� too many children still require at least one trip to the emergency department each year.
And a significant chunk of those visits will come about two weeks after students go back to school.
The cause of this annual upsurge is believed, in part, to be exposure to germs and viruses that cause chest infections. Schools are a breeding ground for these bugs, and kids with asthma are vulnerable.
The disease itself is something of a mystery. Across sa国际传媒, the number of people diagnosed with asthma more than tripled between 1979 and 2004.
While some research shows the trend line levelling off, no one really knows what caused the huge increase. Worsening air pollution is a possibility.
Nevertheless, the spike is coming, and parents should have a plan for dealing with it. Over the long term, asthma is controlled by the use of steroid inhalers. These have no serious side-effects and can be employed safely for decades.
But they only offer protection if used continuously, and it鈥檚 here that kids are at risk. Many of them stop using their inhalers during the summer break. They figure a holiday should buy them relief from tiresome routines like daily medications. That is a recipe for trouble.
The first step is to make sure kids are back on their puffers now that school has started. It takes at least two weeks for the benefit to be felt.
Parents on Vancouver Island can also take their children for a checkup at clinics run by Island Health. There is one at Victoria General Hospital, and a second at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital.
Specialists test the child鈥檚 breathing and review medications. Nebulizers might be provided to help younger children use their inhalers.
For older children, a simple type of spirometer is available. The child blows into a mouthpiece, and the device measures air flow through the lungs.
One of the challenges parents face is knowing how to gauge the severity of an attack. Used regularly, spirometers can track lung function over time, and provide an early warning if symptoms are peaking.
There is some good news, however. Although the incidence of asthma has risen greatly, we鈥檝e become much better at treating it.
Across sa国际传媒, the number of children hospitalized with the disease fell 55 per cent over the past decade. On Vancouver Island, the reduction was nearly 60 per cent.
Those are remarkable numbers. It would be difficult to find another chronic ailment with such a dramatic improvement in outcomes.
Experts say the turnaround is due, in part, to persistent symptom monitoring, better patient awareness and rapid followup by family physicians.
But the drop in hospitalizations also coincides with the introduction of the Fair Pharmacare program. The provincial health ministry rolled out the new benefit in 2003. The decline in hospital visits began in 2004.
It鈥檚 not hard to see why. Some inhalers cost $100 or more for a two-month supply. That was beyond the reach of low-income families.
In any event, a disease that once had to be fought in hospital wards is increasingly contained at home and in doctors鈥� offices.
And with schools reopening, the message for parents is simple. If your child has asthma, vigilance is especially critical over the coming couple of months.
