Genetics, pollution and passive smoking are some of the factors that cause asthma in children.Early diagnosis can help treat this illness effectively and keep it under control.
CHENNAI:S Shortness of breath, immense pressure on the chest and suffocation are some of the most common problems faced by asthmatics. According to latest statistics provided by the World Health Organization (WHO), almost 10% of the world’s asthma patients live in India, of whom 10-15% are children. On World Asthma Day, CE finds out the reasons for the increase in the incidence of childhood asthma over the last few years.
In Tamil Nadu, doctors have estimated a 25% rise in asthma among children over the last five years. Dr K Thirupathi, consultant pulmonologist, SIMS Hospital, Vadapalani, says that the causes for childhood asthma are genetics and external triggers such as environmental pollution. “Though the condition is said to have a genetic predisposition, the recent increase of cases is especially alarming. One another reason that can be attributed to increasing incidences is lack of adequate breast feeding,” he avers.
Many mothers stop breastfeeding their children at a very early age, which in turn paves the way for more infections that can be treated only by antibiotics. This gives rise to a vicious cycle, where abuse of antibiotics takes place, resulting in antibiotics resistance. Nearly 14% of childhood asthma cases in South India are caused by infections and excessive use of antibiotics. Lalitha Ramakrishnan, mother of 10-year-old Vyas says that she stopped breastfeeding her son when he was a year-and-a-half old due to poor health. “After I stopped breastfeeding him, he was diagnosed with asthma. Yes, there are other reasons that might have caused the condition, but I am sure this is one of it,” she rues. Childhood asthma may become severe if it’s not treated early. Along with genetic factors, childhood infections especially viral and toxic environmental fumes,and passive smoking can have causative effects.
For Anand Rao, (45), a media consultant, treating his 10-year-old son with asthma was a nightmare. “He is 17 now and we go for treatments and therapies every now and then. Though inhalers are one of the mainly used treatments, a lot of children prefer oral tablets, and those are expensive,” he says. Why? Oral tablets are easy to take despite inhalers being more effective. There is also a common misconception that inhalers
are addictive.
While diagnosing asthma in children can be difficult, it is important to be able to identify common symptoms. Many children might go symptom-free for a very long time before having an attack and most times, a few symptoms are also confused with other respiratory diseases. “This is one of the major reasons why it’s important to spread awareness and also educate people about childhood asthma,” says Dr Thirupathi.
SYMPTOMS
Constant coughing made worse by viral infections while the child is asleep or is triggered by exercise or cold air.
Shortness of breath or rapid breathing
Fatigue (when a child slows down)
Problems sleeping due to coughing
Chest tightness
Grunting during feeding (for infants)
Do you have an Asthma action plan?
An Asthma management plan has information of a child’s treatment, including:Calling the doctor or going to the ER.
Medicines — what and when to take them.
How to control asthma long term and also handle triggered attacks.
Medication
Dry powder inhalers
Liquids that can be used in nebulizers
Pills
Metered-dose inhalers, Injectable medications, Albuterol (quick relief)
Apps
My Breathefree
Serves as a virtual caregiver that includes video demos of the correct use for various types of inhalers in 10 languages, as well as dose reminders, tracking tools for peak expiratory flow rate, a trigger map, and other resources from the company’s public education initiative.
My Asthma
Allows you to check and track asthma by using the Asthma Control Test (ACT), understands your environment and its affect on asthma, monitors your potential ‘triggers’, connects popular health tracking applications, connects to smart devices to analyse exercise information, stores your Peak Flow record, shares information with your doctor to help them understand your condition.