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Healthcare | 15
Asthma –
The Silent Pandemic
Far from being a mild condition, asthma
can prove potentially fatal
by Dr Sneh Khemka,
Medical Director, Bupa International
he word ‘pandemic’ has, in the admit an otherwise fit young man in his mid- dramatic attacks are few and far between. But
T
last few weeks, been uttered from twenties. He had been playing football that asthma, as a condition, is on the rise, and fast.
thousands of lips the world over afternoon, and even an hour after stopping, he
and the media frenzy over swine was still finding it difficult to catch his breath. A Silent Pandemic
flu has kept our collective public When I saw him first, I didn’t think much of It’s estimated that 300 million people have
health attention firmly focused it – some rest, a whiff of oxygen and a couple asthma worldwide. But it is expected that by
on viruses. of puffs on a stronger inhaler ought to do the 2030 that figure will have risen to 400 million.
But what we are perhaps quick to overlook trick. But when, 30 minutes later, his oxygen In some countries, the rate of increase has
are other diseases that are sweeping the globe saturation was dropping and he was finding it been such that for every one child diagnosed
in a silent but deadly pandemic of their own, difficult to talk to me, I realised that all was not with asthma in 1999, two children are
one of the most important of which is asthma. well. diagnosed in 2009. And more importantly, last
What happened over the next ten minutes year asthma killed over a quarter of a million
A mild disease? shocked me to the core – his situation changed people around the world.
In many people’s minds, asthma is a mild to critical and I had to summon the These significant increases in the prevalence
condition that requires nothing more than a resuscitation team. We cannulated him, gave of the disease are causing widespread economic
couple of puffs on an inhaler to keep it under him intravenous medications, forced oxygen and health burdens to communities where
control. However, in a doctor’s mind, asthma is into his lungs and gave him other drugs to these burdens did not previously exist, and is
a condition that can cripple and kill. increase the strength of his breathing. But changing the health landscape significantly in
Seeing someone having an asthma attack, or despite all of this, his oxygen levels dropped so urbanised areas where the disease is more
even worse having one yourself, is a truly low that his heart stopped. We defibrillated him common.
frightening experience. The staring, desperate with cardiac shocks and put a tube in his throat Research shows an almost 30-fold variation
eyes of the patient as they fight to get some air to mechanically ventilate him, and transferred in asthma levels between different countries,
into their lungs, their sucked-in chest and pale him to the Intensive Care Unit. He survived with more urban, ‘westernised’ nations tending
blue lips and the overwhelming feeling of and made a full recovery, leaving hospital just to have the most cases.
impending doom all combine to make it an three days later. The highest levels of asthma exist in the UK,
occasion not to be repeated. Fortunately, this situation only happens to New Zealand, Australia, Republic of Ireland
As a junior, I remember a particular incident the unlucky few. Awareness and better medical and the USA. The lowest are found in some
where I was paged to the emergency room to management of the disease means that such Eastern European countries, Indonesia, Greece,
www.investmentinternational.com June 2009 Investment International
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