Emergency asthma admissions quadruple as children return to school

Mark Mansfield

Emergency hospital admissions for children with asthma in Wales quadruple when pupils return to school after the summer holidays, new figures show.

Parents and teachers are being urged to be vigilant ahead of the new term, with more than 40,000 children estimated to be living with asthma in Wales.

Figures covering 2023 to 2025 show an average of 96 emergency asthma admissions involving children aged five to 16 in September, compared with 24 in August – a rise of 304%.

Asthma + Lung UK Cymru said the return to the classroom can expose children to triggers including viruses, colds and dust, while routines around the use of preventer inhalers can also slip during the summer holidays.

The charity said most asthma flare-ups can be prevented through good management, preparation and awareness.

Professor Isabel Oliver, Chief Medical Officer for Wales, said: “The best way to protect children with asthma is to prevent an attack before it happens.

“Keeping up daily preventer inhaler routines, making sure reliever inhalers are always close at hand, and having an up-to-date asthma action plan in place can make a huge difference.

“It’s so important for parents, carers and teachers to be vigilant as children return to school. A few simple steps now could help prevent potentially life-threatening asthma attacks.”

Parents are being advised to make sure children use their steroid preventer inhaler as prescribed and have access to their reliever inhaler and spacer, if they use one, while at school.

Families are also being encouraged to ensure children have an up-to-date asthma action plan which is shared with their school and to arrange an annual asthma review with their GP or asthma nurse.

Signs that a child’s asthma may be worsening include breathlessness, wheezing, coughing and chest tightness.

Joseph Carter, head of Asthma + Lung UK Cymru, said: “Each September, there is a rise in the number of asthma attacks, unfortunately leading to more hospital visits.

“An increase in viruses, coughs, colds, and dust mites in schools can trigger asthma symptoms and cause flare-ups. However, you can help reduce this risk through proper asthma management, preparation and awareness.

“We are asking parents and teachers to look out for signs that their child or pupil’s asthma may be worsening and if it is, to take urgent action.”

He said preventer inhaler routines could sometimes slip during the summer holidays, leaving children more vulnerable to an attack when they returned to school.

A&E

Simon, who lives near Tenby, described how his seven-year-old son Otis had previously ended up in A&E after picking up viruses following the return to school.

He said: “Returning to nursery and then school after the summer holidays was a worrying time. Within a couple of weeks, he’d picked up a virus that could trigger an asthma attack.

“The GPs saw him, but within 24 hours he was in A&E unable to breathe.

“The respiratory clinic prescribed him a preventer inhaler, which we used daily, morning and night and it improved things dramatically, but we were still ending up in A&E, where they’d give Otis oxygen and steroids. Sometimes, he would need an overnight stay.”

Simon said his son’s condition had become more manageable as he got older and following support from an asthma specialist pharmacist who visited his school.

He said: “Now Otis has turned seven, he is a lot more resilient and because of help from a visiting asthma specialist pharmacist at his school, we have been able to fine-tune his medication and have a robust asthma action plan in place.

“For example, we know that when Otis goes back to school after the summer term, he will no doubt pick up a virus. What we do now is keep a close eye on him and be more vigilant if he’s coming down with a cold.

“We did this last year, and it meant that, even though he did get a virus, it did not trigger an asthma attack, and we did not end up in A&E.”

Asthma + Lung UK Cymru said anyone whose child is having an asthma attack which is not improving after following their asthma action plan or using their reliever inhaler should call 999.

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