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Asthma Emergencies Expected to Spike As Students Return to School

Posted on: Monday, 21 August 2006, 09:01 CDT

CHICAGO, Aug. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Like clockwork, asthma attacks and hospitalizations among children returning to school peak 18 days after Labor Day but parents are largely unprepared for the respiratory assault, says a new survey from the American Lung Association.

A recent Canadian study published in the Journal of Asthma and Clinical Immunology confirmed what many school administrators see yearly: back-to-school asthma is an annual predictable phenomenon triggered by students returning to school with viral infections.

More than six times as many asthmatic children of elementary school age are admitted to the hospital in early fall than during the hot, smoggy days of summer, according to studies done by scientists in the United States and Canada.

But an American Lung Association survey reveals that while asthma emergencies are predictable, parents of children with asthma are not taking basic steps to manage their child's asthma.

-- less than half (48%) of parents have talked to the teacher about their child's asthma -- fewer than half (42%) have made sure their child's medication is available at school -- less than one third (31%) have their child under medical supervision

More than 120,000 children in the Chicago area suffer from the potentially life-threatening disease, which is a major cause of hospitalizations in children under 15. An estimated 500,000 student days are lost in the Chicago Public School System as a result of asthma.

"Back-to-school asthma is a predictable occurrence and parents of an asthmatic child should be prepared," said Maureen Damitz, Director of Community Education at the American Lung Association of Metropolitan Chicago. "Parents can avoid an unmanageable medical crisis at school by having a fast-acting medication on hand, communicating with the child's teachers and consult with a physician to develop an Asthma Action Plan for their child."

"A plan tells everyone what to do in an emergency," she continued. "It should identify a child's specific asthma triggers, medications and instructions regarding physical activity, like using an inhaler before strenuous exercise."

Illinois students now have the right to carry and self administer their own rescue inhalers as well as their own epi-pen device which allows them to stave off severe reaction to food or insect allergies.

What can parents do to be prepared? Parents can manage their child's asthma by: -- being up-to-date on regular doctor's visits -- having prescriptions updated and filled for the first day of school -- have the appropriate self medication forms signed and on file at your child's school -- send the child to school with two fast-acting inhalers, one to carry and one to leave in the office as a back up -- schedule a flu shot now for your child to be immunized in October -- completing a 504 plan with the school that communicates your child's health needs to all appropriate staff.

For more information, go to the American Lung Association of Metropolitan Chicago website http://www.lungchicago.org/ or call 312/243-2000.

American Lung Association of Metropolitan Chicago

CONTACT: Kevin Tynan, +1-312-628-0225, Cellular +1-312-659-6884, orMeghan Mahan, +1-312-628-0250, Cellular +1-773-209-6704, both of American LungAssociation of Metropolitan Chicago

Web site: http://www.lungchicago.org/

Source: PRNewswire

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