Asthma peak hits Alberta in September as children return to school

Alberta's emergency rooms and urgent care centers have been busy treating children and teens with asthma-related problems throughout September, and doctors predict another peak in the fall and winter. are.

Figures provided by Alberta Health Services show there were 994 asthma-related pediatric visits in the first three weeks of September.

These numbers are similar to last year, when overall monthly visitors were 1,171, and on par with pre-pandemic levels.

“In September, AHS hospitals and emergency departments, as well as hospitals across Canada, experienced a typical spike in pediatric asthma-related emergency department visits and hospitalizations,” AHS spokesperson Kelly Williamson said in an email. “We are working on it,” he said in an email.

“This increase is primarily due to colds, which account for approximately 65% ​​of asthma attacks.”

AHS does not disclose the number of asthma visits that occur at other times of the year.

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Asthma-related ER and emergency department visits (under 18 years old) in September:

• 2024: 994 (including September 1st to 24th)
• 2023: 1,171 people
• 2022: 1,767
• 2021: 695
• 2020: 274
• 2019: 1,252 people
• 2018: 979 people

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“Almost every September, we see an increase in asthma visits among children of all ages, especially school-age children,” said Dr. Stephen Friedman, professor of pediatrics and emergency medicine at the Cumming School of Medicine. University of Calgary.

“This is usually caused by a viral illness. We start to see it again when kids start going back to school and are indoors more. It's also…an early appearance of viral season. It matches.”

Two years ago, the number of asthma-related visits was unusually high, Friedman said.

“Except in the fall of 2022, when viral diseases saw a very large and dramatic resurgence after years of decline due to isolation and public health precautions during the coronavirus pandemic,” he said. “This is consistent with previous years.”

According to AHS, many factors contribute to this increase, including returning to classrooms with close contact with others, sharing drinks and snacks, temperature changes, and the circulation of environmental allergens, mold, and viruses. It is said that it is.

What parents can do

Dr. Sam Wong, who works at Edmonton's Stollery Children's Hospital, sees an increase in the number of asthma-related hospital visits this time of year.

“Most children with asthma come to us with some degree of wheezing or shortness of breath. They're having trouble breathing,” said Wong, president of the pediatric division of the Alberta Medical Association.

“They are usually known as asthmatics, so their parents have usually tried medicines at home. And then they show up in an emergency, so they need more medicine. And sometimes they need oxygen. And if it's more severe, they're going to need oxygen, stay in the hospital and continue medication. ”

Oral steroids can be administered, Wong said. In severe cases, steroid drips may be given.

Preventing asthma flare-ups can be difficult to prevent, he said, but it can help ensure children take the medications recommended by their health care providers.

“If you're taking inhaled steroids, you should take them regularly. If you're supposed to be taking inhaled steroids and haven't taken them over the summer, you should probably start taking them again.” And emergency medicine – Ventolin. [inhaler] -as needed. ”

Friedman said another important step is to avoid asthma triggers.

“We are trying to prevent that through hand hygiene, proper hand washing, and avoiding close contact with people who have a runny nose, cough, or fever,” he said.

“And obviously children shouldn't go to school or day care when they're sick.”

Both doctors encourage parents to get their children vaccinated against influenza and COVID-19 this fall, regardless of whether they have asthma or not.

“We highly recommend influenza and COVID-19 vaccinations,” Wong said.

“One way to prevent the disease is to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, but the vaccination rate is not very high, which is unfortunate.”