World Asthma Day 2021 will be observed on May 5. Various programmes are organized on the day in order to spread awareness about this chronic lung disease and to recognise the struggles of people suffering from it. The special day provides a common platform to researchers, pharmacists, pulmonologists and other stakeholders to take required actions in order to address the rising prevalence of asthma in the world.
US-based Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) organizes the annual observance. GINA is a medical guidelines organisation that works with public health officials and health care professionals globally to reduce asthma prevalence, morbidity, and mortality.
Asthma is an inflammatory disease, in which a person experiences difficulty in breathing due to narrowing and swelling of the bronchial airways.
World Asthma Day 2021: Theme
GINA has announced the theme for this year’s World Asthma Day as “Uncovering Asthma Misconceptions”.The theme asks the stakeholders to address common widely held mythsand misconceptions concerning asthma. According to GINA, the misconceptions prevent persons suffering from asthma from enjoying optimal benefit from the major advances in the management of this condition.
World Asthma Day 2021: Why it is celebrated
The first World Asthma Day was celebrated in over 35 countries in 1998.The first World Asthma meeting was held in Barcelona, Spain in the same year. In a bid to improve the lives of people suffering from asthma, GINA collects evidence, conducts research and organizes events such as World Asthma Day.
World Asthma Day 2021: Significance
According to Global Asthma Report 2018, around 1000 people globally die every day owing to asthma. The disease also affects around 339 million individuals every year. When the disease remains undiagnosed and untreated in most of the kids, it leads to their death.
According to World Health Organisation (WHO), Asthma is a public health problem not just for high-income countries. The disease occurs in all countries regardless of the level of development. Most asthma-related deaths occur in low- and lower-middle-income countries, WHO says.
Read all the Latest News, Breaking News and Coronavirus News here