Don't pause asthma treatment this summer
Children with asthma should keep taking their medication through the summer holidays – or risk becoming seriously unwell when school starts again in September.
The severe asthma team at Birmingham Children's Hospital have issued the warning ahead of the annual rise in asthma attacks that follows the return to the classroom.
Dr Prasad Nagakumar, Consultant in Paediatric Respiratory Medicine and Asthma Lead at the hospital, said: "Every September we see a well-recognised increase in asthma attacks as children go back to school. It's a combination of things – children mixing again and passing round coughs and colds, changes to daily routine, and everyday triggers in the classroom.
"When a child seems perfectly well, it's tempting to stop or cut down the preventer inhaler. But asthma is a long-term condition, and the preventer works quietly in the background, calming the inflammation in the airways. Stop it, and symptoms can creep back, leaving your child more vulnerable to an attack."
Asthma is the most common long-term condition of childhood, affecting around one in 11 children in the UK and causing coughing, wheezing, a tight chest and breathlessness. Emergency admission rates are higher across the West Midlands than the national average.
To reinforce the message, Teresa Evans and Laura Morris, both Respiratory Nurse Specialists (pictured), have created a video to highlight the issues children may face if they don’t continue with their medication. You can watch the video here: https://youtube.com/shorts/VuhkcKXVFOA?feature=share
Dr Nagakumar added: "Give your child their medication exactly as prescribed, and check both inhalers are in date with enough doses left. Dig out their written asthma action plan too, so you and anyone else looking after them over the holidays know exactly what to do if symptoms start to worsen.
"The holidays are also an ideal time to book an asthma review with your GP or asthma nurse, far easier than fitting one around the school day."