Study in Lancet says children with poorly controlled asthma need Kovid vaccine on priority

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New Delhi: Even though the Government of India is clear that it not in a hurry To introduce vaccination among children, a Scottish study involving more than 750,000 school children aged 5-17 years has concluded that children with poorly controlled asthma should be given priority for vaccination. NS Study, driven Between March 2020 and July 2021, Posted in Lancet Respiratory Medicine,

The study, conducted by researchers from the Universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Strathclyde, concluded: “School-aged children with asthma who have had recent hospitalization or two or more courses of oral corticosteroids (for ‘poorly controlled’) asthma marker) significantly increased the risk of COVID-19 hospitalization and should be considered a priority for vaccination. This would translate to 9,124 children across Scotland and an estimated 1,09,448 children across the UK.

“Understanding that children with asthma are at increased risk of serious COVID-19 outcomes is critical to ongoing policy discussions on vaccine prioritization. Our analysis provides the first national evidence of an increased risk of COVID-19 hospitalization in school-aged children with markers of poorly controlled asthma,” said lead author Professor Aziz Shaikh from the University of Edinburgh in a statement.

The findings are important in the Indian context as well, as high levels of pollution in northern India, particularly Delhi, may worsen asthma symptoms. In addition, about six percent of Indian children are estimated to have asthma.

India so far has a vaccine that has been licensed for use in children aged 12-18 years, but there is no policy yet on immunization of children.

Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has said on several occasions that the government would like to consider all aspects carefully before taking a decision on the matter. However, some statements have been made, including Dr. on the basis of priority,

Read also: Asthma inhalers can reduce severe COVID impact, hospitalization, suggests study in Lancet

Children with asthma are at greater risk

The study found that children with poorly controlled asthma were more likely to be hospitalized with COVID than their healthy counterparts. The authors wrote in the study, “We found that children aged 5-17 years with poorly controlled asthma have a higher (3-6 times higher) risk of COVID-19 hospitalization than those without asthma. “

Highlighting this point, Shaikh said: “The main takeaway from this study is that it is important to keep children’s asthma under control as this greatly reduces the risk of Covid-19 hospitalization. Vaccination of people with poorly controlled asthma provides an additional important layer of protection against serious COVID-19 consequences. ,

Asthma affects an estimated 78 million children worldwide. NS global asthma report 2018 estimated that 6 percent of Indian children have asthma. Some estimates suggest that the total number of asthma patients in india May be in the range of 1.5-2 crores.

The World Health Organization defines asthma as: long term position In which the air passages in the lungs narrow due to inflammation and the muscles around the small airways tighten. It causes the common symptoms of asthma: cough, wheezing, shortness of breath and chest tightness. These symptoms are intermittent and are often worse at night or during exercise.

(Edited by Saikat Niyogi)

Read also: Asthma, obesity more likely in Delhi children than in Mysuru, Kottayam, says study, blames pollution

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