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 May
6-New figures released today on World Asthma Day (May 6)
estimate that 1 in 20 people in the world now has asthma. According
to initial results of the Global Burden of Asthma report, asthma is
now one of the world’s most common long-term conditions, affecting
an estimated 300 million people worldwide.
ArabMedicare.com
will be marking World Asthma Day with
an online awareness campaign highlighting activities and events that
will be taking place in the Arab World to promote public awareness
about World Asthma Day, and as a continuation to promote asthma
awareness year round on the ArabMedicare.com web portal.
Worldwide,
asthma accounts for 1 in 250 deaths. This is a relatively low
fatality rate compared with other conditions, but many of these
deaths are preventable. Suboptimal medical care and a lack of
information mean that people continue to die needlessly from the
condition. For example,
in the Arab World, a recent national survey in Saudi Arabia
illustrated that the growing rate of asthma is now very high among
Saudi children, up to 22% in some cities.
Factors cited for contributing to the increase rate of asthma
among children include their
visits to parks where they are predisposed to inhale pollens, or
their coming into contact with pets and animals along with dust
mites and cockroaches in the house.
All of which, these allergens are known to play a powerful
role in triggering asthmatic attacks, and further illustrate the
long-term importance of greater public awareness about asthma and
its affects on the health of the Arab population.
The
Burden of Asthma Report, commissioned by the Global Initiative for
Asthma (www.ginasthma.com),
aims to raise awareness of asthma around the world and highlights
the economic and social costs of the condition. It also encourages
individual countries to take urgent action and make asthma a major
health priority within their own regions.
Professor
Tim Clark, Chairman of the Global Initiative for Asthma, said:
“GINA’s goal on World Asthma Day is to highlight the fact that
with proper diagnosis, good treatment and effective management,
asthma can be controlled and the person with asthma can lead a full
and active life. We want to encourage governments around the world
to work together with healthcare professionals and people with
asthma in a bid to ease the burden of asthma.”
“With
several Arab countries now participating at the local level in the
World Asthma Day campaign, this creates a unique opportunity for the
region’s healthcare providers and the public to come together to
learn more about the latest advances and practices in asthma
management. It also
provides a forum for people to share their ideas and experiences
which will contribute to creating a more informed society about the
asthma disease,” said Mahatma Davis, Chief Executive Officer for
ArabMedicare.com.
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