Midlands asthma expert urges parents and carers to take four steps to prevent child asthma emergencies
NHS England is reminding parents and carers of children with asthma that the change of seasons as children go back to school often brings a drop in temperature which can trigger asthma attacks
Week 38, known as the ‘September Spike’, is when asthma attacks rise after school resumes after the summer holidays.
During Ask About Asthma Week (8-11 September), Midlands asthma experts are urging parents and carers of children with asthma to take four simple and effective measures to help their child control their asthma:
- Get an asthma action plan in place
- Understand how to use inhalers correctly
- Schedule an asthma review – every year and after every attack
- Consider air pollution and its impact on lung health
Asthma is the most common long-term medical condition affecting children and young people in England, and 1 in 11 are affected by the condition, around 3 in every classroom. Poorly managed asthma results in over 20,000 hospital admissions every year in England. 90% of asthma deaths are preventable yet children die of asthma every year.
It is important that parents and carers of children with asthma recognise the signs of an asthma attack:
- wheezing
- coughing
- shortness of breath
- your chest feeling tight
Symptoms — which can range from mild to severe — can be triggered by different things including exercise, high levels of air pollution, cold air, or contact with something you’re allergic to, such as pollen, dust, mould or animals.
In the West Midlands, 2,690 children under the age of 19 years were admitted to hospital emergency departments in 2023/24 for asthma. In the East Midlands, 1,125 children under the age of 19 years were admitted to hospital emergency departments in 2023/24 for asthma.
Joanne Hamilton, Respiratory Nurse Specialist and NHS Midlands Respiratory Team, said “As children head back to school in the Midlands, it is very important that parents and carers who may spot the signs of asthma in their children — wheezing, coughing and/or shortness of breath — book an appointment with their GP surgery.
“Asthma usually starts in childhood, but it can happen at any age. If your child has asthma, please ensure that you have an annual asthma review with your GP–and after any asthma attack–as well as an asthma action plan in place. Personalised asthma action plans can help save children’s lives.”