Chennai floods: Asthma patients advised to keep off damp walls

CHENNAI: Asthma patients in Chennai should be careful about the moulds or fungal spores that grow on damp walls after the heavy rain and floods in Chennai, warn doctors.
While asthma is an allergic reaction triggered by various allergens like pollen, dust mites and pets, the increased moisture content in the air during monsoon promotes the growth of moulds or fungal spores, which can grow on damp walls and directly trigger asthma attacks.
"Also, during this season, there usually is a high amount of pollen in the air, resulting in breathlessness and wheezing," said Dr P K Thomas, consultant physician and chest specialist, Apollo Clinic.
Wheezing, coughing and shortness of breath are all symptoms of asthma, which is a chronic respiratory disease, caused by inflammation of the air passages in the lungs.
A person suffering from asthma experiences constriction in the airway passages, resulting in a restricted flow of oxygen to the lungs. During monsoons, the high humidity levels act as a trigger, leading to tightening of the airways muscles and difficulty in breathing.
According to the American Lung Association, asthma is one of the most chronic disorders of childhood and is the third-largest reason for hospitalization among children under 15.
Dr Somu Sivabalan, consultant pediatrician and pulmonologist at Kanchi Kamakoti Child Trust Hospital in Chennai, said: “Despite increasing prevalence, asthma remains one of the poorly-controlled diseases. Inhalation therapy has emerged as the effective treatment to manage asthma, compared to oral pills and tablets. When asthma drugs are inhaled, they reach the lungs directly instead of going through the blood and other organs of the body. Thus, there are fewer side effects and lesser drug dosage.”
When inhaled corticosteroids are used consistently, asthma symptoms are relieved more effectively than through the use of any other single long-term control medication in both children and adults.
“So, with the help of novel and effective treatment options like inhalation therapy don’t let asthma dampen your spirit this monsoon season,” said the doctor.