Does Your Standard Of Living Affect Your Chances Of Having Asthma In The Uk
In 2012 incidence rates were 36% higher in the most deprived communities than in the least deprived. Prevalence is around 11% higher. These trends are broadly consistent over time. Higher levels of damp housing and fungal spores, pollution and second-hand smoke among more deprived groups could be contributing factors. But further research is needed to fully understand this link.
Number of people per 100,000 ever diagnosed with asthma, by standard of living, 200412
Find out how the standard of living figures were calculated: Methodology – standard of living
Emerging Issues In Respiratory Diseases
There are other important respiratory diseases not included in this topic area, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, sarcoidosis, respiratory distress syndromes, and upper airway conditions such as rhinitis and chronic sinusitis. In some cases, effective preventive interventions do not exist. In others, nationally representative trend data for disease prevalence and/or incidence, causative exposures, and other preventable risk factors are not available for tracking of measurable goals. It is hoped that, as preventive interventions and surveillance for respiratory hazards and diseases continue to improve, future versions of Healthy People will include measurable goals for at least some of these additional respiratory hazards and diseases.
Other emerging issues in the Respiratory Diseases topic area include:
Which Racial Or Ethnic Groups Have Higher Asthma Rates
- See AAFAs groundbreaking research report on Asthma Disparities in America.
- Racial and ethnic differences in asthma frequency, illness and death are highly connected with poverty, city air quality, indoor allergens, not enough patient education and poor health care.
- The rate of asthma and the prevalence of asthma episodes is highest among Black Americans.1
- Black children are three times as likely to have asthma compared to white children.1
- Compared to white Americans, Black Americans are five times more likely to visit the emergency department due to asthma.6
- Black Americans are nearly three times more likely to die from asthma than white Americans7
- When sex is factored in, Black females have the highest rate of fatality due to asthma. In 2019, Black women were three times more likely to die from asthma than white men.7
Recommended Reading: What Happens If You Smoke Weed With Asthma
How Do You Know When An Asthma Attack Is Severe
You should seek medical attention immediately if you’re experiencing severe breathlessness or wheezing , you can only speak in short phrases, you have to strain your chest muscles to breathe, you have low peak flow readings on a peak flow meter or using an inhaler does not improve your symptoms, Mayo Clinic says.
Those experiencing asthma attacks can show a progression of symptoms, said Mogayzel.
Often, someone will have trouble breathing and be short of breath. Soon, their nostrils may flare or you may see their skin pulling into their ribs. They then may not be able to form complete sentences.
In severe cases, someone may become pale or cyanotic . They may also become non-responsive altogether. “Those things are really a sign of life-threatening asthma when you get to that point,” Mogayzel said.
Depending on the person, the progression of symptoms can be rapid, he added. The symptoms can also vary depending on person.
Identifying when an exacerbation requires medical treatment may also be difficult because someone with asthma may already have baseline of symptoms that makes it hard to detect changes in, said Dr. Alfin G. Vicencio, chief of the Division of Pediatric Pulmonology at Mount Sinai.
If symptoms don’t get better or get worse after following the treatment steps a doctor prescribes, emergency care may be required.
Asthma: 1000 Deaths A Year ‘preventable’
Nine out of every 10 asthma deaths each year could be prevented, doctors said yesterday.
In 2009, the disease killed 1,131 people or one every eight hours, figures show. Doctors said as many as 1,000 of those patients could have been saved with better treatment.
Too many people with the disease do not understand how important it is to use their inhaler, which stops the condition getting worse over time, they say.
As many as eight million people in Britain have asthma, but most regard it as a mild disease that causes the odd episode of wheezy breathing.
Dr Dinesh Saralaya, who runs a specialist clinic in Bradford, said most asthmatics were surprised when told that the disease could kill.
Most deaths are in the minority of patients who have severe asthma those who have previously been in hospital after an attack.
However, Dr Saralaya warned: It can even kill those at the mild end of disease.
He said too many patients skipped regularly using their preventer inhaler – which contains a low-dose steroid – and relied solely on the reliever inhaler when undergoing an attack.
They failed to realise that the mild steroid would stop their asthma getting worse over time, he said, thereby risking their lives in the long term.
He said: We really need to raise the profile of the disease. Patients need to be educated properly about it, and then take a bit more responsibility for managing it themselves.
Read Also: Army Eczema Waiver
Knowing When To Seek Urgent Care
None of these statistics should suggest that race and poverty are the only factors that place a child at risks. Ultimately, the same risks would apply to any children whose asthma is not being controlled, whether due to inconsistent care, the underuse of rescue medications, and the failure/inability to avoid the environmental triggers.
There is also the simple fact that some children with asthma are sicker than others. In these children, who may be all too familiar with emergency rooms and hospital visits, the specter of a severe, the even fatal attack may seem a very real possibility. But, even for those these children, fatalities are more associated more with missed symptoms and/or delayed treated than anything else.
According to the research:
- Between 80 percent and 85 percent of children who died from asthma had progressive symptoms anywhere from 12 hours to several weeks before their deaths.
What this tells us is that death is less likely to come “out of the blue” but rather in a timeframe where treatment can usually be sought. This doesnt suggest that the parents were complacent it simply punctuates the dangers that insufficient health care places on a child with severe asthma.
Ensuring You Get The Assistance You Need
Make sure that your family, friends, and those close to you know what to do if you have an attack. Keep a copy of your medications and emergency contacts, including your doctor, on your phone so that you can show it to others who may come to your aid during an attack.
If your asthma is very severe, you may consider getting a medical ID bracelet that can alert first responders to your condition. Additionally, there are even phone apps available that can help you and your doctor monitor your symptoms.
Some risk factors for death from asthma include:
- uncontrolled asthma or noncompliance with an asthma treatment plan
- previous severe asthma attacks or hospitalizations due to asthma
- poor lung function, as measured by peak expiratory flow or forced expiratory volume
- having been put on a ventilator for asthma previously
Some groups have an increased risk of death due to asthma:
- According to the World Health Organization (
Besides the potential to be fatal, there are several other complications that can occur due to asthma. These can include:
- symptoms that disrupt your day-to-day activities or hobbies
- increased absences from school or work
- permanent narrowing of your airways, which can affect how you breathe
- side effects from medications that youve been using to control your asthma
- repeated visits to your doctor or the emergency room
- psychological side effects, such as depression
Don’t Miss: Are Chihuahuas Good For Asthma
About 17% Of Americans That Suffer From Asthma Are Regular Smokers
Not only can tobacco trigger asthma attacks in adults, but it can also harm people around them. For example, secondhand smoke will endanger children who have asthma more than it will hurt adults, given that children have smaller airways.
Whats more, children of smokers are at a higher risk of developing lung and sinus infections.
% Of American Adults Are Diagnosed With This Condition According To Cdc Asthma Statistics
About 19.2 million Americans over 18 struggle with asthma. Although asthma is more prevalent among children, adults are more likely to die due to this condition. Based on the stats, the death rate was highest among people over 65 , followed by people between 35 and 64 . Death rates were lowest among people between 25 and 34 and people between 18 and 24 .
Read Also: Marine Asthma
Global Alliance Against Chronic Respiratory Diseases
The Global Alliance against Chronic Respiratory Diseases contributes to WHOs work to prevent and control chronic respiratory diseases. GARD is a voluntary alliance of national and international organizations and agencies from many countries committed to the vision of a world where all people breathe freely.
How Many People Die From Asthma
- On average, ten Americans die from asthma each day. In 2019, 3,524 people died from asthma. Many of these deaths are avoidable with proper treatment and care.7
- Adults are five times more likely to die from asthma than children.7
- Women are more likely to die from asthma than men, and boys are more likely than girls.7
- Black Americans are nearly three times more likely to die from asthma than white Americans.7
Also Check: What Happens If You Smoke Weed With Asthma
What Are The Costs Of Asthma
- From 2008-2013, the annual economic cost of asthma was more than $81.9 billion including medical costs and loss of work and school days:8
- $3 billion in losses due to missed work and school days
- $29 billion due to asthma-related mortality, and
- $50.3 billion in medical costs
What Are Indoor And Outdoor Allergies
Types of indoor and outdoor allergies include sinus swelling, seasonal and returning allergies, hay fever and nasal allergies. Many people with allergies often have more than one type of allergy. The most common indoor/outdoor allergy triggers are: tree, grass and weed pollen, mold spores, dust mites, cockroaches, and cat, dog and rodent dander.
- Allergic rhinitis, often called hay fever1 affects 5.2 million of the children population and 19.2 million of the adult population.2,
- In 2018, white children were more likely to have hay fever than Black children.2
- The same triggers for indoor/outdoor allergies also often cause eye allergies.
Don’t Miss: Nasal Inhaler Side Effects
What Is The Worldwide Prevalence Of Asthma
Asthma affects 5-10% of the population or an estimated 23.4 million persons, including 7 million children. The overall prevalence rate of exercise-induced bronchospasm is 3-10% of the general population if persons who do not have asthma or allergy are excluded, but the rate increases to 12-15% of the general population if patients with underlying asthma are included. Asthma affects an estimated 300 million individuals worldwide. Annually, the World Health Organization has estimated that 15 million disability-adjusted life-years are lost and 250,000 asthma deaths are reported worldwide.
How Many People In The Uk Have Asthma
We found that 8 million people over 12% of the population have been diagnosed with asthma. This means more people have had an asthma diagnosis than have been diagnosed with all other lung diseases combined.
This does not mean that there are 8 million people living with the condition, however. Many children diagnosed with asthma grow out of it. Asthma UK states that around 5.4 million people receive treatment for the disease. Research has also suggested asthma maybe considerably over-diagnosed.
Further research is needed to understand if this is a more accurate indication of the number of people living with asthma in the UK. Or whether this is an underestimate due to the number of people who no longer take treatment for asthma in adulthood, despite still having symptoms.
Our data also confirm that the number of people who have had a diagnosis of asthma is plateauing. There has only been a small increase of under 3% in recent years. However, asthma is still the most common lung condition by a considerable margin.
Estimated numbers of people ever diagnosed with asthma 200412
Read Also: What Is The Blood Test For Eosinophilic Asthma
Essential Facts Stats And Quotes Relating To Asthma
This page contains facts, stats and quotes that LPC members may find useful when writing business cases or developing resources to support the commissioning of an asthma management service or inhaler technique service.
This page is work in progress and will continue to be updated with new facts, stats and quotes.
Facts, stats and quotes on other topics can be accessed on the Essential facts, stats and quotes page.
Asthma UK, Asthma facts and statistics
- 5.4 million people in the UK are currently receiving treatment for asthma: 1.1 million children and 4.3 million adults .
- Asthma prevalence is thought to have plateaued since the late 1990s, although the UK still has some of the highest rates in Europe and on average 3 people a day die from asthma.
- In 2014 1,216 people died from asthma.
- The NHS spends around 1 billion a year treating and caring for people with asthma.
- One in 11 children has asthma and it is the most common long-term medical condition.
- On average there are three children with asthma in every classroom in the UK.
- The UK has among the highest prevalence rates of asthma symptoms in children worldwide.
- Asthma attacks hospitalise someone every 8 minutes 185 people are admitted to hospital because of asthma attacks every day in the UK .
Asthma UK, Patient safety failures in asthma care: the scale of unsafe prescribing in the UK
Risk Factors For Asthma
Several risk factors have been associated with asthma mortality, including a history of near-fatal asthma requiring intubation and mechanical ventilation, hospitalization or emergency care visit for asthma in the past year, currently using or having recently stopped using oral corticosteroids , not currently using inhaled corticosteroids, a history of psychiatric disease or psychosocial problems, poor adherence with asthma medications and/or poor adherence with a written asthma action plan, food allergy in a patient with asthma .
Near-fatal asthma and fatal asthma represent the most severe clinical presentations of asthma. Near fatal asthma is described as acute asthma associated with a respiratory arrest or arterial carbon dioxide tension greater than 50 mmHg, with or without altered consciousness requiring mechanical ventilation . In the NFA the most important pathophysiological events that lead to death are cardiac arrhythmias and asphyxia followed by complications of invasive mechanical ventilation such as barotrauma and ventilator-associated pneumonia. In a study of asthma patients admitted with a near-fatal episode, two-thirds of subsequent severe attacks or deaths occurred within 1 year of the previous life-threatening admission .
It was observed that the prevalence of sensitisation to moulds increased with increasing severity of asthma .
Several factors were identified as contributing factors in asthma deaths .
Don’t Miss: How To Make A Homemade Inhaler For Asthma
How Common Is Insect Allergy
People who have insect allergies are often allergic to bee and wasp stings and poisonous ant bites. Cockroaches and dust mites may also cause nasal or skin allergy symptoms.
- Insect sting allergies affect 5 percent of the population.13
- At least 90-100 deaths occur each year in the United States due to insect sting anaphylaxis.14
References
American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology. . Allergy Facts.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. . 2018 National Health Interview Survey data. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved from
FoodSafety.gov. . Protect Yourself from Food Allergies. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Wood, R. A., Camargo, C. A., Lieberman, P., Sampson, H. A., Schwartz, L. B., Zitt, M., Collins, C., Tringale, M., Wilkinson, M., Boyle, J., & Simons, F. E. R. . Anaphylaxis in America: the prevalence and characteristics of anaphylaxis in the United States. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 133, 461467.
Jerschow, E., Lin, R. Y., Scaperotti, M. M., & McGinn, A. P. . Fatal anaphylaxis in the United States 1999-2010: temporal patterns and demographic associations. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 134, 1318-1328.e7.
Allergy Research
Avoidable Factors In Asthmadeaths
Although asthma mortality rates havedeclined in many higher income countries,confidential enquiries in the United Kingdomhave suggested that avoidable factors still playa part in most asthma deaths.
The most recent comprehensive review, of195 asthma deaths in the UK during 2012-2013,found that nearly half died without seekingmedical assistance or before emergencymedical care could be provided, and themajority were not under specialist medicalsupervision during the year prior to death.Only one quarter had been provided with apersonal asthma action plan, acknowledged toimprove asthma care, and there was evidenceof excessive prescribing of short-acting relievermedication, under-prescribing of preventermedication, and inappropriate prescribing oflong-acting 2-agonist bronchodilatorinhalers as the sole form of treatment.
These observations, from a HIC with atradition of evidence-based medicine and anational health service which is free at thepoint of use, suggest that improved access toappropriate asthma medication is a key goal inreducing asthma mortality worldwide.
Also Check: Can You Join The Army If You Have Asthma
The Prevalence Of Asthma In The Us Is More Common In Boys Than Girls
When it comes to childhood asthma, 8.3% of boys and 6.7% of girls suffer from this condition. Interestingly enough, the prevalence rates are reversed among adults. In other words, 9.8% of women can still have asthma, compared to 5.5% of men. Why?
Boys are more likely to have asthma because of the airway size thats smaller than the one girls have. Asthma facts and statistics also suggest that its prevalence becomes almost the same in men and women when they enter their 20s, while women in their 40s are more likely to suffer from adult asthma than men.