September 11th 2024.
A new study released today has revealed the hotspots for asthma in Australia. The research, conducted by the University of New South Wales, found that areas with higher levels of socio-economic disadvantage and larger Indigenous populations had a higher proportion of childhood asthma cases. It was also discovered that this chronic lung disease is more prevalent in children living in regional parts of the country, with some communities experiencing rates more than double the national average.
The study identified hundreds of childhood asthma hotspots across the country, with a majority of them located in regional or remote areas of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, and Tasmania. This information comes at a time when the world is facing a global pandemic and Australia is no exception. In fact, as the nation continues to grapple with the COVID-19 crisis, it is vital that we understand and address other health issues, such as childhood asthma.
Lead author Jahid Khan, from UNSW's School of Clinical Medicine, explained that while a link between asthma and social deprivation was expected, the extent of the difference across communities was surprising. "We suspected there would be a higher proportion of children with asthma in areas of greater deprivation, but the data showed a larger gap than we anticipated," Khan stated. These findings highlight the urgent need for further resources and targeted intervention in these communities, in order to reduce the burden of asthma among children.
The research team analyzed data from the 2021 Census - the first to collect information on diagnosed long-term health conditions - to determine asthma prevalence in children and teenagers up to the age of 14, as well as sociodemographic features in 2321 communities. The results showed that in identified hotspots, the proportion of children with asthma reached as high as 13.8 per cent in the Acton-Upper Burnie region on Tasmania's north coast, which was more than double the national average of 6.27 per cent for children.
Other hotspots were found in Tasmania's East Devonport region, as well as the Mount Hutton-Windale region in New South Wales' Lake Macquarie. In NSW, hotspots were also identified in the Central Coast, Riverina, and New England regions, while in Victoria, they were found in Shepparton, Ballarat, and Bendigo. Queensland also had hotspots in Ipswich and Logan.
In conclusion, this study sheds light on the alarming prevalence of childhood asthma in certain areas of Australia and emphasizes the need for targeted intervention and resources to address this issue. With this knowledge, we can strive towards better health outcomes for children and reduce the burden of asthma in our communities.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
