A simple gauge called peak flow meter is required to make a confirmed diagnosis of asthma but 90 percent of doctors diagnosing and treating asthma do not use the peak flow meter, senior chest physician at the Ojha Institute of Chest Diseases Dr Nisar Rao said on Wednesday.
“It is not necessary that all asthma patients may experience shortness of breath. Even if cough occurs repeatedly particularly induced by change of weather one should suspect possibility of asthma. Many of these patients are treated with repeated courses of anti biotic and cough syrups,” he said at a seminar organised by the JPMC’s Department of Chest Medicine in collaboration with the Pakistan Chest Society to mark World Asthma Day 2011.
The programme was largely attended by chest physicians, postgraduate students and senior doctors.
Prof Nadeem Rizvi, Head of Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC)’s Department of Chest Medicine while giving a presentation on the ‘Management of Asthma’ said that modern medicines have helped many asthma patients live a perfectly normal and healthy life.
“In a few cases, it is difficult to manage asthma through routine therapy. In such cases, poor compliance and aggravating factors like allergic rhinitis, occupational allergens, dietary factors and psychological factor should be considered,” he added.
Dr. Mirza Saifullah Baig, consultant chest physician, while giving a presentation on the ‘Global Asthma Burden’ said that over 300 million people across the globe are suffering from asthma. “The increase in global prevalence is particularly due to increase in the number of asthma patients in underdeveloped country like Pakistan.
Rampant urbanisation and adoption of the Western lifestyle have particularly increased the exposure of children and pregnant women to house hold allergens like house dust-mites and excreta from rodent and cockroaches, causing an increase in the number of asthma patients,” he added. “Active and passive smoking by the pregnant ladies is also an important contributory factor for its prevalence.”
Prof Javid A. Khan, chest physician at the the Aga Khan University Hospital while discussing the ‘Problem of Asthma Management in Pakistan’ said that poor compliance is one of the major problems in management of asthma and lack of knowledge and understanding about the disease is the reason for poor compliance.
He criticised the way vaccine therapy was being used to treat patients with asthma and warned that these can be dangerous, as they cannot be routinely recommended.
Prof Suhail Akhter, chest physician at the Ziauddin Medical University discussed the ‘Update in the Management of Asthma’. He said that a step-wise approach in asthma management has improved the quality of life of many asthma patients.
He insisted that use of inhaler is safe even for young children. “Therefore, they should be available in public sector hospitals for poor patients,” he added. Dr Akhter urged pharmaceutical companies to reduce the cost of inhalers so that they can be in reach of a common man.
