Many patients with asthma are unable to take the vital treatment they need due to the high costs of vital medication. The new report highlights the need to tackle these issues so patients can receive the medicines they need to treat the health issue.
One in every 10 asthma patient from across the globe reportedly lives in India. The costs associated with asthma are even greater when compared to TB and HIV/AIDS. Researchers reveal most asthma patients take inhaled corticosteroids (ICS), which can help reduce the seriousness of the condition, as well as decrease the rates of death related to asthma.
For the study, researchers from The George Institute for Global Health and the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research at UNSW Sydney surveyed close to 1,400 people with asthma in Australia. Data revealed almost half of the adults and one-third of the children that were part of the study were either skipping doses or taking low levels of asthma medicines so they can last longer than usual. Researchers also found a vast majority of young male adults were likely to use asthma treatments sparingly.
"We know that preventer inhalers can be incredibly effective at controlling symptoms and preventing people from being hospitalised or even from dying of asthma, yet our study has found that out-of-pocket costs are preventing many from accessing medicines which can be life-saving," senior research fellow Tracey-Lea Laba of The George Institute, told a news portal.
Study author Professor Helen Reddel of the Woolcock Institute at UNSW Sydney says asthma is a disease that is long-term, which is why patients need the right dose of medication to keep the inflammation under control.
The team also found many doctors are unaware of their patients' plight. "We need doctors to talk to their patients to stress that this Band-Aid approach does not work, and can leave them hospitalised or even worse as a result," Reddel told a news portal.
The study's findings were originally published in the journal JACI: In Practice.
