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Specialists speak about causes of asthma `spike' By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF A regular regimen of asthma medication during the summer is an important part of keeping asthmatic children out of hospital between September and December. Respiratory health specialists from McMaster University unraveled the mystery of the September to December `asthma spike' for a crowd of parents, teachers and other interested parties Thursday night at a forum hosted by national research network AllerGen at the Halton Region Centre. Dr. Malcolm Sears, professor of medicine with McMaster University and director of respiratory medicine at St. Joseph's Health Care, pointed out that every year, from September to December, there is a predicable rise in severe asthma attacks and hospitalization rates among schoolaged children. "We started looking into why. What is it about September?" asked Sears. What this means, said Sears, is that when the children return to school, they are coming into contact with viruses without the protection that would keep their asthma under control. Sears said he and his colleagues looked into solutions to the `asthma spike' and in September 2005 conducted an experiment in which some participating asthmatic children were given an asthma medication (in addition to their regular asthma therapy) for a six-week period after the start of school. Other children were given placebos. Sears said the children taking the additional medication experienced a 53 per cent reduction in days with worse asthma symptoms and a 78 per cent reduction in unscheduled physician visits for asthma. Those present also heard from Dr. Susan Waserman, professor of medicine at McMaster University and Director of Adverse Reactions Clinic at the Firestone Institute of Respiratory Health. Waserman said it is important for anyone with asthma to be assessed for allergies that can aggravate their asthma because the sooner the allergy is discovered the sooner treatment can begin to get that asthma under control. She said many children with asthma also have food allergies and, in those cases, it is very important to keep the asthma under control because a child who goes into anaphylactic shock after eating a food they are allergic to is more likely to die if they suffer from severe asthma. Sears also spoke to parent concerns associated with asthma medication. Some parents, he said, don't regularly give their children their asthma medication because they fear the steroids in the medication will stunt their child's growth. Sears said the research he has seen has shown asthma medication has a minimal impact on stunting a child's growth -- for example, by one 7 · Wednesday, December 5, 2012 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com Dr. Malcolm Sears "It turned out two of the key factors were children going back to school and sharing their viruses with their friends." Sears said even the common cold can exacerbate a child's asthma and lead to a hospital visit. Another factor, he said, is that during the summer, many children fall behind on their asthma treatment. "There are many reasons for this," said Sears. "It's warm, they're outside, they're enjoying life, and really parents want to give them a holiday from their medication." Dr. Susan Waserman centimeter. He noted uncontrolled asthma can also hinder a child's development and if a child is hospitalized for asthma, they will have to take oral steroids, which can have side effects. Waserman said she has heard from patients some asthma medication can cause behavioural problems in children, however, this can be addressed through dosage. When it came to the causes for asthma in children, Sears said the theories are numerous. He said there appears to be a connection between obesity, inactivity and asthma, however, he and his colleagues are still trying to understand exactly what it may be. Dr. Judah Denburg, scientific director of the national research network AllerGen NCE Inc., said studies have shown children who live near highways tend to have more severe asthma showing an apparent link between asthma and pollution. Sears said there has been some scientific discussion to suggest the increase in asthma may have been due to the evolution of hygiene in society. This theory, known as the Hygiene Hypothesis, states that a lack of early childhood exposure to infectious agents and germs suppresses the natural development of the immune system and increases the likelihood a child will develop things like asthma and severe allergies. Sears said the good news is that asthma rates in most countries do not appear to be on the increase at this time and may even be starting to drop. ! ! 3 3 3 0 S o u th S e rv ic e R o a d , B u rlin g to n , O N , L 7 N 3 M 6 905.333.IVY1 (4891) reservations@ivybar.ca | www.ivybar.ca An Independently owned DGC ENTERTAINMENT Property