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Millions of teenagers in Africa suffer from asthma without an official diagnosis, researchers have found, as the country rapidly urbanizes.
The study, published in the journal Lancet Child and Adolescent Health, involved 27,000 students from urban areas in Malawi, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Ghana and Nigeria. They found more than 3,000 reported asthma symptoms, but only about 600 received an official diagnosis.
Many of the children reported missing school or having their sleep disrupted by wheezing.
“If our data are generalizable, it means there are millions of young people in sub-Saharan Africa with undiagnosed asthma symptoms,” the study said. said lead researcher Dr. Gioia Mosler of Queen Mary University of London.
Quick GuideDisplay common conditionsThe human cost of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is enormous and increasing. These diseases claim the lives of approximately 41 million of the 56 million people who die each year, three-quarters of whom live in developing countries.
NCDs are just that. Unlike viruses, for example, they cannot be transmitted. Rather, they are caused by a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental, and behavioral factors. The main types are cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases (heart attacks and strokes). About 80% are preventable, and all are on the rise as economic growth and urbanization drive aging populations and lifestyles, making poor health a global phenomenon. It is spreading all over the world.
NCDs were once considered a disease of the wealthy, but now they also affect the poor. Illness, disability, and death are perfectly designed to create and widen inequalities, and the poorer they are, the less likely they are to receive accurate diagnosis and treatment.
Investments in tackling these common and chronic diseases that kill 71% of us are incredibly low, while the costs to families, economies, and communities are staggeringly high.
In low-income countries, some of the needed funds are invested or donated to fight NCDs, which are usually progressive and debilitating diseases. Although the threat of infectious diseases continues to receive attention, cancer mortality rates far exceed those caused by malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS combined.
‘Common Symptoms’ is a Guardian series that reports on the prevalence, solutions, causes and consequences of NCDs in the developing world and tells the stories of people living with these diseases.
Tracy McVeigh, Editor
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The team leading the study said research into the effects of pollution on lung health had contributed to the introduction of Ultra Low Emission Zones (URES) in London, with medicines and diagnostic tests urgently needed in the area. He said there was.
Asthma prevalence has increased in sub-Saharan Africa over the past few decades, a trend driven by rapid urbanization exposing children to more risk factors such as air pollution. It is considered. Experts said the climate crisis was also likely to be playing a role.
The Achieving Asthma Control in African Children and Adolescents (Acacia) study involved students aged 12 to 14 years. Screening revealed that while 12% reported asthma symptoms, only 20% of that group had a formal diagnosis of asthma.
Rapid urbanization has exposed children to more risk factors such as air pollution, which is considered one of the causes of asthma in countries such as Uganda. Photo: Rise Images/Alamy
Lung function tests suggested that almost half of the undiagnosed participants with severe symptoms were “very likely” to have asthma.
The study found that even among those with a formal diagnosis, about one-third did not use any medication to control their symptoms.
Dr Rebecca Nantanda from Makerere University in Kampala, who led the study in Uganda, said: “Undiagnosed and poorly controlled asthma has a negative impact on the physical and psychosocial health of affected children and their caregivers.” It’s having a big impact.” The high burden of undiagnosed severe asthma revealed by the Acacia study requires urgent action, including access to medicines and diagnostics. ”
Professor Jonathan Grigg, from Queen Mary University of London, said that while the effects of the climate crisis were not yet clear, exposure to fine particles of pollutants was making asthma worse. “In some parts of sub-Saharan Africa, climate change may increase the exposure of these vulnerable children to dust and wild fires.
“On the other hand, climate change mitigation is expected to reduce exposure to fossil fuel-derived particles in this region.
“The pharmaceutical industry has been reluctant to support asthma research and initiatives. For example, companies may feel unable to support research in countries where they do not intend to sell asthma products,” he said.
“Innovations such as portable wheeze detectors and school-based asthma clinics also have the potential to significantly reduce the burden of asthma.”
