Asthma attacks in children and adolescents increase at the start of the school year.
- Asthma affects around 4 million people in France.
- At the start of the school year, there is an increase in seizures among children and adolescents.
- Three causes can explain this phenomenon.
At the start of the school year, the Gregory Pariente Foundation (GPFD) alert on the notable increase in asthma attacks in children and adolescents during this particular period.
Asthma attacks: no more visits to the emergency room at the start of the school year
Each year, the first two weeks back to school result in an increase in asthma attacks among young people under 15 years old. “We are observing a peak in the number of calls to SOS doctors, a peak in visits to hospital emergency rooms and a peak in hospitalizations,” underlines The Gregory Pariente Foundation. The data from daily epidemiological surveillance by the SOS Médecins networks and the OSCOURS data (Organization of Coordinated Emergency Surveillance) are in fact authentic: in 2022, between week 35 and week 36, the increases observed are respectively +82 % (SOS doctors), +169% (Emergencies) and +33% (Hospitalizations). “These data are similar to those of the last 3 years”, specifies the patient association.
Three causes can explain this phenomenon: the cessation of basic treatment during the holidays, the increase in episodes of respiratory viral infections when community life resumes and exposure to certain allergens at school and college. .
Back to school: what to do against “school asthma”?
Faced with the resurgence of cases “school asthma”, the Gregory Pariente Foundation issues several recommendations:
– Parents and young people must be even more attentive to the warning signs that asthma is no longer controlled: daily breathing difficulties, wheezing in the chest or even chest tightness, waking up at night, more frequent use of an inhaler, etc.
– You must also resume basic anti-asthma treatment and allergy treatment as soon as possible (if the latter are interrupted).
– Young people must also protect themselves from allergens at school and college by avoiding sharing the same coat rack and rubbing against their classmates’ clothes when jostling on the stairs or corridors. Those who use school buses must be even more vigilant due to the presence of mites, mold and even sometimes traces of cleaning products due to lack of good ventilation in this type of transport.
Asthma affects around 4 million people in France
“Finally, teachers and infirmary staff must be specifically informed about the student’s asthma and allergy,” conclude the activists.
Asthma affects around 4 million people in France. This chronic disease is responsible for nearly 60,000 hospitalizations and 1,000 deaths each year.
