Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature currently requires accessing the site using the built-in Safari browser.
About 25 million Americans, or 1 in 12 people, have asthma, a figure that is rising despite efforts to control key asthma triggers such as indoor smoking, U.S. government researchers said Tuesday. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an additional 4.3 million people were diagnosed with asthma from 2001 to 2009. The life-long disease causes wheezing, tightness in the chest, coughing and shortness of breath. "Despite the fact that outdoor air quality has improved, we've reduced two common asthma triggers - secondhand smoke and smoking in general -- asthma is increasing," Paul Garbe, chief of the CDC's Air Pollution and Respiratory Health Branch, said in a statement.
"While we don't know the cause of the increase, our top priority is getting people to manage their symptoms better." Asthma diagnoses increased among all demographic groups between 2001 and 2009, but children were hit hardest, with asthma affecting 9.6 percent of children, compared with 7.7 percent of U.S. adults. The biggest increase in asthma rates was among black children, rising almost 50 percent from 2001 through 2009. Seventeen percent of non-Hispanic black children had asthma in 2009, the highest rate among racial/ethnic groups.
"Asthma is a serious, lifelong disease that unfortunately kills thousands of people each year and adds billions to our nation's healthcare costs," CDC Director Dr. Thomas Frieden said in a statement. "We have to do a better job educating people about managing their symptoms and how to correctly use medicines to control asthma so they can live longer more productive lives while saving health care costs." People with asthma can control symptoms and prevent attacks by avoiding triggers such as pollution and using prescribed medicine, like inhaled corticosteroids, as directed. The cost of treating asthma rose about 6 percent to $56 billion in 2007, from $53 billion in 2002, according to the most recent figures. For patients, that's about $3,300 a year.
According to the study, about 2 out of 5 uninsured people with asthma, and 1 out of 9 insured people with asthma could not afford their asthma medications. CDC experts said in a conference call that doctors needed to do a better job of educating people with asthma on how to avoid triggers that can cause an asthma attack. Asthma triggers are usually environmental, such as tobacco smoke, mold, outdoor air pollution and infections linked to flu, cold-like symptoms, and other viruses. The report was released to coincide with World Asthma Day, an annual event sponsored by the Global Initiative for Asthma.
1 in 12 in U.S. has asthma...and number is rising - Health - Allergies and asthma - msnbc.com
Asthma rates rising...
...
Asthma rates rising...
1 in 12 in U.S. has asthma...and number is rising
5/3/2011 - Rates among black children up 50 percent in a decade, CDC reports
About 25 million Americans, or 1 in 12 people, have asthma, a figure that is rising despite efforts to control key asthma triggers such as indoor smoking, U.S. government researchers said Tuesday. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an additional 4.3 million people were diagnosed with asthma from 2001 to 2009. The life-long disease causes wheezing, tightness in the chest, coughing and shortness of breath. "Despite the fact that outdoor air quality has improved, we've reduced two common asthma triggers - secondhand smoke and smoking in general -- asthma is increasing," Paul Garbe, chief of the CDC's Air Pollution and Respiratory Health Branch, said in a statement.
"While we don't know the cause of the increase, our top priority is getting people to manage their symptoms better." Asthma diagnoses increased among all demographic groups between 2001 and 2009, but children were hit hardest, with asthma affecting 9.6 percent of children, compared with 7.7 percent of U.S. adults. The biggest increase in asthma rates was among black children, rising almost 50 percent from 2001 through 2009. Seventeen percent of non-Hispanic black children had asthma in 2009, the highest rate among racial/ethnic groups.
"Asthma is a serious, lifelong disease that unfortunately kills thousands of people each year and adds billions to our nation's healthcare costs," CDC Director Dr. Thomas Frieden said in a statement. "We have to do a better job educating people about managing their symptoms and how to correctly use medicines to control asthma so they can live longer more productive lives while saving health care costs." People with asthma can control symptoms and prevent attacks by avoiding triggers such as pollution and using prescribed medicine, like inhaled corticosteroids, as directed. The cost of treating asthma rose about 6 percent to $56 billion in 2007, from $53 billion in 2002, according to the most recent figures. For patients, that's about $3,300 a year.
According to the study, about 2 out of 5 uninsured people with asthma, and 1 out of 9 insured people with asthma could not afford their asthma medications. CDC experts said in a conference call that doctors needed to do a better job of educating people with asthma on how to avoid triggers that can cause an asthma attack. Asthma triggers are usually environmental, such as tobacco smoke, mold, outdoor air pollution and infections linked to flu, cold-like symptoms, and other viruses. The report was released to coincide with World Asthma Day, an annual event sponsored by the Global Initiative for Asthma.
1 in 12 in U.S. has asthma...and number is rising - Health - Allergies and asthma - msnbc.com
Life with severe asthma is hard. In order to prevent an asthma attack, Karen Ecker needed to live like a shut in. "I couldnt go outside without a mask. I was pretty much a hermit in my house," Ecker said. People with severe asthma often need to take powerful medications to open their airways. But sometimes even these medications aren't enough. "Any type of triggers like perfumes or lotions or air fresheners would send me into a pretty major asthma attack, and with that I would end up having to go to the emergency room," Ecker said. Ecker could only work from home. But the toughest part was not being able to provide the care she wanted for her daughter. "She was two when I got sick. I couldnt read her a bedtime story. I couldnt sing with her without coughing," Ecker said.
Now, Ecker can enjoy being outdoors with her daughter and their new dog. All because of a non-drug treatment called bronchial thermoplasty. Dr. Sumita Khatri from the Cleveland Clinic explains. "It involves the use of heat which is applied to the lining of the lungs, the airways to try to reduce the thickness of the muscle around those airways," Khatri said. During bronchial thermoplasty, a tube is inserted into the patient's airway, and a catheter is threaded through so heat can be applied to the muscle. Bronchial thermoplasty is performed in three separate visits. Each procedure treats a different part of the lungs.
Even before the third procedure, many of the patients feel better. "Does that mean that their asthma's gone? No. Does it mean that they never have an asthma flare? No. Often they still do have asthma flares but we've noticed that the severity of the flare is less and the duration of the flare is less," Khatri said. Doctors at the Cleveland Clinic are studying results so they can figure out which patients are most likely to benefit from bronchial thermoplasty. Many patients express these same thoughts. Its like a new life. I get emotional every time I talk about it," Ecker said. Ecker can now do things most of us take for granted. She has not had an asthma attack since she had the procedure. And she rarely has to use an inhaler.
Source
In a study of more than 13,000 UK children, five-years-olds were about twice as likely to have asthma if they were not conceived naturally. The children were also more likely to need medication, which could be an indication of more severe asthma. The findings were published in the journal Human Reproduction. The researchers, at the Universities of Oxford and Essex, analysed data from children born between 2000 and 2002.
Researcher Dr Claire Carson said 15% of all the children in the study had had asthma at the age of five, but this proportion had risen to 24% among the 104 of them born through assisted-reproduction technologies. She said it was interesting that the pattern had emerged, but far too soon to say if IVF treatment resulted in higher rates of asthma. Other explanations, such as genetics, may explain the association. Dr Carson told the BBC that parents should not be put off IVF. "Assisted reproduction technologies offer a chance to become a parent when there isn't another option," she said. "For the majority of children asthma is quite manageable."
Malayka Rahman, from the charity Asthma UK, said: "This study suggests that there might be an association between IVF treatment and asthma developing in children, but the sample size for this study is small and currently the research in this area generally is not conclusive. "Those considering IVF should speak to their GP about the benefits and health risks in order to make an informed decision."
Source
Involuntary childlessness may increase the likelihood of early death, the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health reports. The Danish study looked at more than 21,000 couples seeking IVF treatment. They found women who were unsuccessful in having a child were four times more likely to die prematurely than women who had been mothers. Critics stress that the risk of early death was low - with just 316 people in total dying over the 11 year study.
The authors of the paper also point out that their research suggests a link between childlessness and premature death and not a cause. They wrote: "Mindful that association is not the same thing as causation, our results suggest that the mortality rates are higher in the childless." The researchers based their findings on data obtained from various population registers in Denmark on births, deaths and IVF procedures from 1994 to 2005. During this time 21,276 childless couples registered for IVF treatment, 15,149 children were born and a total of 96 women and 220 men died.
Four times more likely
After analysis, the results suggested having a child cut the risk of early death, particularly among women. Childless women were four times more likely to die early from circulatory disease, cancers, and accidents than those with children- and men were about twice as likely. Critics stress it is hard to determine the underlying cause of the results seen.
Ingrid Collins, a consultant psychologist, said: "This is a very specific situation of people who are trying to have children - the study's findings cannot be used to generalise across the whole general population. "People having IVF tend to be desperate for a child, if they are unsuccessful they may be depressed- it may even be this rather than childlessness that is playing a part. One can only guess. "It is complicated and many factors play a part in death rates- people with deep spiritual belief, being married, having a higher social class - these can all help in living longer."
People 'hang on'
One in seven people will not respond to salmeterol, found in purple or green inhalers, which is given to tens of thousands of children in the UK. A study of 62 children showed those patients could be identified and given effective treatment. The results were published in the journal Clinical Science.
Salmeterol, which is found in Seretide and Servent inhalers, is used to relax the airways in the lungs. It is taken by children who cannot control their asthma just with a blue inhaler, which is given to all children when they are diagnosed with asthma.
The reason why some children do not respond to salmeterol is hidden in their genetic code. The drug acts on beta-2 receptors in the airways, however, one in seven people have a genetic mutation resulting in their receptors being a slightly different shape, which the drug struggles to recognise. DNA taken from a child's spit can be tested to reveal the shape of their beta-2 receptor and whether salmeterol will work.
'Striking'
The drug paracetamol, commonly known as acetaminophen and sold as Tylenol, is associated the development of asthma in children if their mothers used it during pregnancy. While researchers at the University of Oslo and University of Bristol said the study provides evidence of the link, they do not suggest changes to safety guidelines for paracetamol use among pregnant women. A secondary analysis of data in the study also linked ibuprofen use by pregnant women to the development of asthma, researchers reported
Previous studies have shown that most pregnant women use acetaminophen for pain and fever, though it has been linked to lower testosterone in boys and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. "Uncovering potential adverse effects is of public health importance, as paracetamol is the most commonly used painkiller among pregnant women and infants," Maria Magnus, a researchers at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, said in a press release.
For the study, published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, researchers analyzed data collected as part of the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study on 53,169 children who had asthma by age 3, 25,394 who had it at 7 years old, and 45,607 children who received asthma medications at age 7 based on records from the Norwegian Prescription Database.
The data linked 5.7 percent of children who had asthma at age 3 and 5.1 percent who had it at age 7 with their mother's use of paracetamol during pregnancy, with the strongest associations if the mother used the drug more than once. Most commonly, the drug was used for some type of pain or fever, or influenza. A secondary analysis also revealed a link between ibuprofen and asthma development by age 3, though not age 7. The researchers said more work needs to be done to understand the link because it does not prove cause and effect.
Prenatal acetaminophen exposure increases asthma risk in children
Older people, including some baby boomers, could see long-term relief from seasonal allergies if treated with allergy shots, researchers in Poland found in a recent study. Allergic symptoms dropped by more than half during a three-year period among participants in a Polish study who received the shots. Researchers said they found the results surprising because of a lack of previous testing with older patients.
Noting that allergies can be missed among older people because of other chronic health conditions, researchers at the Medical University of Silesia found immunotherapy could significantly decrease symptoms after successive years of treatment. "Older people who suffer from hay fever may have health challenges that younger people do not," said Dr. Ira Finegold, an allergist and past president of the American College of Asthma, Allergy, and Immunology, in a press release. "Hay fever is often ignored in older patients as a less significant health problem because of diseases such as asthma, coronary heart disease, depression and high blood pressure. Also, some baby boomers might not realize they have allergies, and their physicians might not suggest allergy shots."
For the study, published in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, researchers recruited 60 patients between the ages of 65 and 75 with seasonal allergic rhinitis and grass pollen allergy. Of the participants, 33 were given specific subcutaneous immunotherapy, or allergy shots, and 27 received a placebo for three years, while have symptoms monitored and tracking each use of other anti-allergy medications.
After three years, patients receiving allergy shots saw their symptoms go down by 55 percent and use of medication drop by 64 percent. Patients given a placebo did not report a significant change in symptoms or use of allergy medication, the researchers reported. "More and more allergists are expanding the age limit for allergy shots as the baby boomer generation enters their senior years," said Dr. Gailen Marshall, editor-in-chief of Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. "Although there are no doubts about the effectiveness of allergy shots for both adults and children, there hasn't been much research until now in older patients."
Shots may ease seasonal allergies for baby boomers
Pennsylvania doctors found patients' asthma was harder to control if they lived near a fracking site, compared with other asthma patients. The findings, in more than 25,000 patients, are not proof of a causal effect. The authors say in the journal JAMA that more safety studies are needed.
Fracking
Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, involves drilling down miles underground and blasting the shale rock with a high-pressure water mixture to release the natural gas trapped inside. Proponents say it has the potential to be greener, in terms of carbon footprint, than some other energy sources. Critics are worried about the impact on humans and the planet - namely, air and water pollution, earth tremors and potential health risks. Public Health England has looked at the issue in the UK and believes "the risks to public health from exposure to emissions from shale gas extraction are low if operations are properly run and regulated".
Cuadrilla shale fracking facility in Lancashire
The US has already pushed ahead with fracking, which is now a big industry. The UK, however, has remained cautious and paused its pursuit following a couple of small earthquakes near a test drilling site in the Blackpool area. US researchers, funded by the National Institutes of Health, set out to study the impact of fracking on the population of Pennsylvania - a region which has seen more than 6,000 shale gas wells drilled in the last decade or more. Using local electronic health records, they identified asthma patients and checked if fracking activity might be linked to disease flare-ups over a six-year period.
Asthma triggers
A flare-up was defined as mild if the patient needed to be prescribed a steroid inhaler, moderate if they needed to go to the emergency department and severe if they had to be hospitalised for their asthma. The Johns Hopkins researchers looked at the distance the patient lived from an active fracking site, as well as other risk factors, such as whether they lived by a busy road. Patients with asthma in areas with the highest fracking activity - judged on distance, size and activity of the shale gas sites in the locality - had higher risk of asthma flare-ups compared with asthma patients living in places with low fracking activity. The odds of a flare-up was about 1.5 to 4 times higher, but the researchers still do not know why. They believe air pollution from the shale site itself as well as the heavy vehicles needed to build and service these facilities might be to blame, although they don't have any proof.
Researcher Sara Rasmussen said: "We need more studies now to explore this theory. Another possible pathway is stress." Asthma can be exacerbated by stress and she says people living in the communities they studied would have had to deal with disruption as the shale gas sites were built. But, again, it's not clear if this would have an impact. Dan Murphy of Asthma UK said: "Asthma is a complex condition affecting one in 11 people in the UK, yet years of research underfunding means it still remains a relative mystery. "While this study suggests that living near fracking industry wells may increase risk of an asthma attack, more research is needed to get a clearer picture of the connection between the two and the impact on people with asthma."
Fracking linked to asthma flare-ups - BBC News
I always knew Tylenol causes liver damage in users.Asthma and allergies info...
Prenatal acetaminophen exposure increases asthma risk in children
Feb. 10, 2016 - A secondary analysis of data also found a link between asthma development and ibuprofen use during pregnancy.
The drug paracetamol, commonly known as acetaminophen and sold as Tylenol, is associated the development of asthma in children if their mothers used it during pregnancy. While researchers at the University of Oslo and University of Bristol said the study provides evidence of the link, they do not suggest changes to safety guidelines for paracetamol use among pregnant women. A secondary analysis of data in the study also linked ibuprofen use by pregnant women to the development of asthma, researchers reported
Previous studies have shown that most pregnant women use acetaminophen for pain and fever, though it has been linked to lower testosterone in boys and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. "Uncovering potential adverse effects is of public health importance, as paracetamol is the most commonly used painkiller among pregnant women and infants," Maria Magnus, a researchers at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, said in a press release.
For the study, published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, researchers analyzed data collected as part of the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study on 53,169 children who had asthma by age 3, 25,394 who had it at 7 years old, and 45,607 children who received asthma medications at age 7 based on records from the Norwegian Prescription Database.
The data linked 5.7 percent of children who had asthma at age 3 and 5.1 percent who had it at age 7 with their mother's use of paracetamol during pregnancy, with the strongest associations if the mother used the drug more than once. Most commonly, the drug was used for some type of pain or fever, or influenza. A secondary analysis also revealed a link between ibuprofen and asthma development by age 3, though not age 7. The researchers said more work needs to be done to understand the link because it does not prove cause and effect.
Prenatal acetaminophen exposure increases asthma risk in children
See also:
Shots may ease seasonal allergies for baby boomers
Feb. 9, 2016 - Allergies can often be missed because of other conditions in older patients, including some older baby boomers.
Older people, including some baby boomers, could see long-term relief from seasonal allergies if treated with allergy shots, researchers in Poland found in a recent study. Allergic symptoms dropped by more than half during a three-year period among participants in a Polish study who received the shots. Researchers said they found the results surprising because of a lack of previous testing with older patients.
Noting that allergies can be missed among older people because of other chronic health conditions, researchers at the Medical University of Silesia found immunotherapy could significantly decrease symptoms after successive years of treatment. "Older people who suffer from hay fever may have health challenges that younger people do not," said Dr. Ira Finegold, an allergist and past president of the American College of Asthma, Allergy, and Immunology, in a press release. "Hay fever is often ignored in older patients as a less significant health problem because of diseases such as asthma, coronary heart disease, depression and high blood pressure. Also, some baby boomers might not realize they have allergies, and their physicians might not suggest allergy shots."
For the study, published in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, researchers recruited 60 patients between the ages of 65 and 75 with seasonal allergic rhinitis and grass pollen allergy. Of the participants, 33 were given specific subcutaneous immunotherapy, or allergy shots, and 27 received a placebo for three years, while have symptoms monitored and tracking each use of other anti-allergy medications.
After three years, patients receiving allergy shots saw their symptoms go down by 55 percent and use of medication drop by 64 percent. Patients given a placebo did not report a significant change in symptoms or use of allergy medication, the researchers reported. "More and more allergists are expanding the age limit for allergy shots as the baby boomer generation enters their senior years," said Dr. Gailen Marshall, editor-in-chief of Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. "Although there are no doubts about the effectiveness of allergy shots for both adults and children, there hasn't been much research until now in older patients."
Shots may ease seasonal allergies for baby boomers
Asthma is one of the top 5 reasons someone is not allowed to learn scuba.Asthma currently affects about 25 million people in the United States, including seven million children. More than half of people with asthma experience at least one asthma attack (a worsening of asthma symptoms) each year. These attacks lead to more than 1.7 million emergency department visits and about 450,000 hospitalizations annually. Moreover, while most deaths due to asthma are preventable, more than 3,000 people in the United States die from asthma each year. Altogether, the direct and indirect costs of asthma to the U.S. economy are projected to reach $20.7 billion in 2010.
Although there is no cure for asthma, with the right care, most people with asthma can minimize their symptoms, prevent asthma flare-ups, and improve their quality of life. Use this forum.internationaldrugmart.com/respiratory-diseases-f48/ to discuss more.
