During my career, we've made some real progress in understanding and managing asthma, but it's clear that people of color are still carrying the heaviest load. A lot of this comes down to social determinants of health. While it's great to have this information and see steps we can take to lessen asthma's impact on families, I can’t help but wonder if it’s enough. Real change is going to take time to reach our communities, and honestly, I haven't seen much evidence that we'll get on top of these issues anytime soon.

Many asthma patients rely heavily on Albuterol for quick relief but it’s not the best long-term strategy. For those dealing with asthma regularly, maintenance medications like inhaled corticosteroids and consistent asthma control measures are crucial. If those aren’t cutting it, there are other options that mix long-acting Albuterol-like meds with inhaled corticosteroids, usually taken once or twice a day. The latest guidelines from the National Institute of Heart, Lung, and Blood even say these can be used safely and effectively during those acute moments.

Let’s talk about how you can take charge of your asthma. Of course, you need to better control your environment if you can and have an asthma action plan. But what I propose is that you work with your provider or be more proactive with medication when symptoms show up, and that's already starting to happen. 

Regardless of how you try to control your asthma. Now with the combinations of medicines we have available, very few patients need to suffer with asthma. For more information on how you can better control your asthma, go to our website at aawellnessproject.org, read more about our asthma initiatives or visit the Asthma and Allergy Network for more information.

Black Americans Still Dying from Asthma

The mortality rate of asthma in the United States has also undergone a consistent decline. The current mortality rate is 9.86 per million compared to 15.09 per million in 2001. However, mortality rates remain consistently higher for Black patients compared to their White counterparts. According to the CDC, from 1999 to 2016, asthma death rates among adults aged 55 to 64 were 16.32 per 1 million persons, 9.95 per 1 million for females, 9.39 per 1 million for individuals who were not Hispanic or Latino, and notably higher at 25.60 per 1 million for Black patients. Read more about our "And Black America" campaign here.

New Asthma Treatment Guidelines Outline Radical Shift in Disease Management

In 2019, The Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) gets together, and they said, ‘We have a fundamental change in asthma management.’ Short-acting bronchodilators alone are no longer recommended for management of adults and adolescents with asthma, up until 20191, that’s the number one therapy we use for the rescue of anyone when they have an asthma attack. Those are the drugs we’ve been using for 50 years to manage patients with asthma. So, this is a major, major change. We have now started using combinations of long-acting beta agonist like Salmeterol and Formoterol in combination with inhaled corticosteroids and short acting beta agonist in combination with inhaled corticosteroids.

If You Have Asthma, Climate Change Directly Affects You

One of the biggest triggers for asthma is air pollution. Studies suggest that leads to stark racial disparities in asthma hospitalizations and emergency department visits among Black children with asthma. For this reason alone, we in the Black community need to take the lead on environmental pollutants and address poor air quality care, discriminatory treatment in health care settings, and the structural factors that disproportionately expose Black children to asthma triggers.

Weight Loss Drugs Might Be Good for Asthma

Patients with asthma who used a glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist for weight loss and losing weight, experienced improved asthma control, according to a poster presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress.

Tips You Might Be at Risk for a Serious Asthma Attack

• History of emergency department visits for asthma or wheezing
• History of asthma exacerbation
• One or more urgent care visits for asthma
• One asthma visit not with urgent care
• Two or more asthma visits not with urgent care

ASTHMA BIOLOGICS

Asthma Biologics are a type of medicine that can really help with severe asthma by targeting the cells and molecules responsible for inflammation in your airways. They're super effective for those struggling with severe, tough-to-treat asthma. Basically, they work by disrupting specific cells or blocking certain molecules that cause your airways to swell when you come into contact with triggers.

Unfortunately, there's a noticeable gap in the use of biologics among Black individuals. This might be due to a lack of familiarity with these treatments, the relatively high cost, a preference to avoid needles, or concerns about side effects compared to White patients.

If you're dealing with asthma that's still not well controlled, don't hesitate to ask your doctor about biologics.

WAYS TO STAY HEALTHY DURING THE FALL ASTHMA PEAK SEASON - FROM THE ALLERGY AND ASTHMA NETWORK



Preparation is the key to staying healthy during the September Asthma Peak. Here are a few the things you should plan during the month of September:

1. Schedule an asthma checkup 
2. Review your Asthma Action Plan. Make sure all asthma medications are refilled leading up to the month of September – including before children return to school. Double check the expiration date on your quick-relief inhaler.
3. Take controller inhalers as prescribed, including during the summer months. 
4. Keep or carry medications at school and work, especially a quick-relief inhaler to treat sudden asthma attacks.
5. Get the flu and COVID-19 vaccines early to prevent infections and/or severe symptoms. Flu vaccines are usually available at pharmacies by late August.
6. Encourage frequent handwashing to reduce the risk of catching a cold or a virus. Many schools and workplaces are providing hand sanitizers.

• Free Virtual Asthma Self-Management Coaching Program – Refer your patients with asthma to our free 6-week virtual coaching program. It is designed to improve patients’ self-management skills. Coaching is delivered virtually by our certified asthma educators. Results show that virtual coaching improves health outcomes and reduces costs. The program is also available in Spanish.