World Asthma Day Summary

On the day after World Asthma Day, May 3, 2022, we scanned the globe to find a statement that best sums up the current state of affairs regarding Asthma.

Kudos to tbe U.S National Institute of Environmental Health NIH Statement on World Asthma Day 2022: Toward Improved Asthma Care

Good enough of summary that we want to publish this in its entirety.

Asthma is a serious lung disease; causes chest tightness, wheezing, and coughing; can often be controlled with proper treatment.

Today (May 3, 2022) on World Asthma Day, the National Institutes of Health reaffirms its commitment to biomedical research aimed at preventing the onset of asthma, understanding its underlying causes, and improving the treatment of it. This chronic airway disease, which is characterized by periodic worsening of inflammation that can make it hard to breathe, affects more than 25 million people in the United States, including more than 5 million children. Left untreated, it can be life-threatening.

While scientists have made substantial progress in understanding asthma diagnosis, management, and treatment, therapies to permanently improve breathing for those who suffer from asthma remain elusive. Researchers around the globe are working steadily toward this goal while they seek to better understand and find new ways to manage the disease. They also are continuing research on the underlying causes of disparities in the incidence, care, and prevention of the disease. On the heels of recently updated management and treatment guidelines, researchers anticipate a brighter future for people living with asthma.

Three NIH institutes primarily support and conduct studies on asthma — the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI); the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID); and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). Other NIH Institutes and Centers also support and conduct asthma research. NIH scientists and grantees made important advances in understanding, treating, and managing asthma in 2021, which are briefly highlighted as follows:

Asthma and COVID-19

An NHLBI-funded study showed that during the pandemic, asthma attacks, also known as asthma exacerbations, significantly decreased in a large group of children and adolescents, compared to the year before the pandemic. The study also found that telehealth visits among these patients increased dramatically during this time. The study included nearly 4,000 participants aged 5-17 years with a prior diagnosis of asthma. Researchers believe a better understanding of the factors that contributed to these improved outcomes could lead to better asthma control in all children and adolescents, as researchers noted no racial or ethnic differences in health outcomes in this population.

A NIAID-funded study found that asthma does not increase the risk of becoming infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. This finding came from a six-month household survey of more than 4,000 children and adults conducted between May 2020 and February 2021.

Asthma Disparities

Researchers have known for decades that social determinants of health – conditions like housing, neighborhood, education, income, and healthcare access – can affect the quality of life and asthma-related health outcomes of people living with the disease. NIH scientists are now reporting new advances in understanding the relationship between social determinants of health and asthma.

Black and Hispanic children who live in low-income urban environments in the United States are at particularly high risk for asthma attacks. These children tend to be underrepresented in large trials of new biologic therapies for asthma.

In a recent NIAID-supported clinical trial, the monoclonal antibody mepolizumab decreased asthma attacks by 27% in Black and Hispanic children and adolescents who have a form of severe asthma, are prone to asthma attacks, and live in low-income urban neighborhoods.

In one study, NHLBI-funded investigators demonstrated the importance of housing interventions in improving the health of children with asthma. Poor quality housing is associated with a high level of asthma triggers – including mold, cockroach, mouse, and dust mite allergens – that can pose a health threat to children with asthma. The study showed the feasibility of using targeted interventions – including better pest management, improved ventilation, and moisture reduction – to achieve healthy housing. It showed that such interventions can result in reduced symptoms and hospitalizations due to asthma.

Environmental Exposures and Asthma

Researchers have known for years that asthma can be triggered by substances in the indoor and outdoor environment. New research shows that exposure to some asthma triggers might even occur before birth.

In an NIH-supported study that included grant support from NIEHS and the NHLBI, researchers reported that prenatal exposure to tiny air pollution particles significantly increased the risk for developing asthma in children. The study, which analyzed data from two different study cohorts, focused on a group of mothers and their children, mostly Black or Hispanic, in the Boston area who lived near major roadways with heavy traffic. It found that more than 18% of the children who were exposed to high levels of these so-called ultrafine particles in the womb developed asthma in their preschool years, compared to 7% of children overall in the United States.

An NIEHS clinical study will assess how environmental factors affect disease progression in non-smoking adults who have moderate or severe asthma. The study will focus on the microbiological and genetic factors associated with atopic asthma, also known as allergic asthma, which is triggered by pollen, dust mites, and other allergens. A better understanding of this data might lead to improved treatments for people with this type of asthma, researchers say.

Climate Change and Asthma

Studies have shown that climate change can increase air pollutants such as ground-level ozone, fine particulates, wildfire smoke, and dust, and that these pollutants can exacerbate asthma. Climate change can also affect the production, distribution, and severity of airborne allergens.

NIEHS, NHLBI, and other NIH institutes and centers are leading the NIH Climate Change and Health Initiative. This is a cross-cutting NIH effort to reduce health threats such as asthma that can develop or worsen because of climate change. The initiative will look at these threats across the lifespan and find ways to build health resilience in individuals, communities, and nations around the world. A strategic framework for the Initiative will help guide NIH investments in this area.

An NIEHS-funded study provides examples of how extreme weather events can affect asthma outcomes. For example, as heat waves and droughts become more frequent and prolonged, the risk of large wildfires will likely increase, resulting in poor air quality that makes it more difficult to control asthma. Other climate-change events can lead to longer and more intense pollen seasons, while mold and dampness in homes may cause asthma to develop or worsen preexisting cases.

About the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID): NIAID conducts and supports research—at NIH, throughout the United States, and worldwide—to study the causes of infectious and immune-mediated diseases, and to develop better means of preventing, diagnosing and treating these illnesses. News releases, fact sheets and other NIAID-related materials are available on the NIAID website.

About the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI): NHLBI is the global leader in conducting and supporting research in heart, lung, and blood diseases and sleep disorders that advances scientific knowledge, improves public health, and saves lives. For more information, visit www.nhlbi.nih.gov. For additional information about NHLBI’s asthma resources, visit https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/BreatheBetter.

About the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS): NIEHS supports research to understand the effects of the environment on human health and is part of the National Institutes of Health. For more information on NIEHS or environmental health topics, visit

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation’s medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

Remembering Alex Curtis

About Alex Curtis

Alex was a very popular and talented young man who excelled in drama to a point where he won a place at the National Youth Theatre in 2006 and had planned to study drama at university in 2008.

Alex had a very positive attitude to life and never let his asthma, eczema and allergies from which he had suffered all his life, get him down and it was this positive attitude that inspired the setting up of the memorial trust in his name the aim of which is to promote asthma and allergy awareness in schools.

Hundreds of people attended the concert to celebrate the life of Alex Curtis. The concert called “Remember Forever” was held at the Abbey Theatre, St. Albans. Alex, aged 17, son of Peter and Jane Curtis of St. Albans died on February 6 after suffering an acute asthma attack at home.

Stuart Borrill, Head of Expressive Arts at the School said: “The whole school has been rocked by the terrible news of Alex’s death. He was an extremely talented student with a natural gift and flair for theatre.”

“Alex’s friends from previous school productions felt very strongly taht a charity event should be organised to mark his passing in a way that reflected what he brought to our school.”

The concert had a cast of 100 students and featured a mixture of all of Alex’s passions – dance,drama,music and Michael Jackson.

It was played to a full house of 230 in which the Curtis family were guests of honour. Theatre manager Tina Swain said: “When the school contacted us regarding the concert we were delighted to offer our support. Alex had recently joined oue Saturday morning theatre group Theatrix and although I only met him on two occasions he made a real impact on me.”

Remember Forever has raised more than £2,000 so far for Asthma UK and the National Eczma Society, and further funds are being raised in school.

Pupils from the school and the Headteacher present representatives from the National Eczema Society and Asthma UK with a cheque, from the proceeds of ‘Remember Forever.’

The Alex Curtis Memorial Trust was set up following the sudden death of Alex Curtis from an acute asthmatic attack in February 2007 at the age of just 17 years. It was felt by his family, friends and school, that something positive should come out of the tragedy.

Remembering Anthony Shadid

Anthony Shadid (September 26, 1968 – February 16, 2012) was a foreign correspondent for The New York Times based in Baghdad and Beirut.[1][2] He won the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting twice, in 2004 and 2010.

From 2003 to 2009 he was a staff writer for The Washington Post where he was an Islamic affairs correspondent based in the Middle East. Before The Washington Post, Shadid worked as Middle East correspondent for the Associated Press based in Cairo and as news editor of the AP bureau in Los Angeles. He spent two years covering diplomacy and the State Department for The Boston Globe before joining the Post’s foreign desk.

In 2002, he was shot in the shoulder by an unknown person in Ramallah while reporting for the Boston Globe in the West Bank.

On March 16, 2011, Shadid and three colleagues were reported missing in Eastern Libya, having gone there to report on the uprising against the dictatorship of Col. Muammar Al-Ghaddafi.[6] On March 18, 2011, The New York Times reported that Libya agreed to free him and three colleagues: Stephen Farrell, Lynsey Addario and Tyler Hicks. The Libyan government released the four journalists on March 21, 2011.[8]
Journalist Anthony Shadid in a talk at Harvard Law School

Awards

Shadid twice won the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting, in 2004 and 2010, for his coverage of the Iraq War.[9] His experiences in Iraq were the subject for his 2005 book Night Draws Near, an empathetic look at how the war has impacted the Iraqi people beyond liberation and insurgency. Night Draws Near won the Ridenhour Book Prize for 2006. He won the 2004 Michael Kelly Award, as well as journalism prizes from the Overseas Press Club and the American Society of Newspaper Editors. Shadid was a 2011 recipient of an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the American University of Beirut.[10] He won the George Polk Award for Foreign Reporting in 2003 and in 2012 for his work in 2011.

Personal life

Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma of Lebanese descent, he was a 1990 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.[12][13] He was married to Nada Bakri, also a reporter for the New York Times. They have a son, Malik. Shadid has a daughter, Laila, from his first marriage.

Death

Shadid died on February 16, 2012 from an acute asthma attack while attempting to leave Syria on horseback. He appears to have had an allergic reaction to the horses. “He was walking behind some horses,” said his father. “He’s more allergic to those than anything else—and he had an asthma attack.”[15] His body was carried to Turkey by Tyler Hicks, a photographer for The New York Times.

Harold Dow Believed to Have Suffered Asthma Attack

Harold Dow, Veteran CBS News Correspondent, Dies
Five-Time Emmy Award Winner Worked on “48 Hours” Since 1988 Premiere, Interviewed Patricia Hearst, O.J. Simpson

Longtime CBS News Correspondent Harold Dow died suddenly Saturday morning.

Dow has been a correspondent for “48 Hours” since 1990 after serving as a contributor to the broadcast since its premiere Jan. 19, 1988. Dow was also a contributor to the critically acclaimed 1986 documentary “48 Hours on Crack Street,” which led to creation of the single-topic weekly news magazine.

“CBS News is deeply saddened by this sudden loss,” said Sean McManus, president of CBS News and Sports. “The CBS News family has lost one of its oldest and most talented members, whose absence will be felt by many and whose on-air presence and reporting skills touched nearly all of our broadcasts. We extend our deepest condolences to his wife Kathy and their children Joelle, Danica and David.”

Harold