Asthma Triggers and Management

This assignment delves into the multifaceted causes of asthma morbidity and mortality. It examines environmental triggers such as allergens and occupational exposures to chemicals. The impact of social determinants like mental health status and medication adherence on asthma management is also discussed. Understanding these factors is crucial for effective asthma control and prevention.

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Name
University

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socio-cultural, biological, and environmental factors that impact health and disease
Prevention of morbidity and mortality from asthma in Australia is a National Health
Priority. Asthma caused 416 deaths in Australia in the year 2010. At 1.6/100,000 people, the
rate is higher than that of international figures (Goeman, Abramson, McCarthy, Zubrinich, &
Douglass, 2013). Treatment modalities have undergone a big change and more effective
treatment is now available. Asthma can be managed better and there is therapy for prevention
of the condition. The socio-cultural causes of the high mortality due to asthma need to be
assessed. The biological and environmental factors that continue to cause deaths due to
asthma also need to be evaluated.
The availability of inhaler medication has brought about revolution in the
management and treatment of asthma. The inhalers are able to deliver the right amount of a
small dose of medication right upto the lungs and quickly control the symptoms of asthma. In
a study that surveyed the status of asthma in 2686 patients, it was found that asthma was well
controlled in 54.4% of the study participants and was not well controlled in 22.7%. 60.8% of
the respondents used a preventer medication that was combined inhaled corticosteroid/long-
acting β2-agonist through the previous year. This shows that morbidity can be reduced if
compliance with taking preventer is 100% so that the disease can be managed better (Reddel,
Sawyer, Everett, Flood, & Peters, 2015).
Several causes related to mortality due to asthma have been found to be preventable
or modifiable. Causes that exacerbate the incidence of asthma and poor management of the
disease include inadequate therapy, smoking and alcohol intake, disrupted families and
psychiatric disorders. Disadvantaged people in the society who suffer from inequity,
psychosocial issues, poor health literacy and isolation from society. Several asthma patients
among people living in remote and rural areas are reported to have died due to poor access to

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emergency care. Use of drugs has been identified as a reason for death in patients of asthma
because the influence of drugs makes it difficult for them to identify a situation that requires
emergency medical treatment and the risk to life due to asthma remains unnoticed. The use of
alcohol may not aggravate asthma but the presence of sulfites can aggravate a condition if the
patient is susceptible. Rapid onset of asthma due to exposure to certain allergens can prove to
be fatal in some cases (Goeman, Abramson, McCarthy, Zubrinich, & Douglass, 2013)
Allergens also increase the risk of infections in patients with slow onset asthma.
Mortality due to asthma is more likely when patients are living alone, are disengaged
socially and have mental health issues. The mental illnesses could be bipolar disorder,
schizophrenia, depression, personality disorder or anxiety. Such patients are less likely to
take medication regularly and may have severe symptoms due to neglect of the problem for a
long time (Goeman, Abramson, McCarthy, Zubrinich, & Douglass, 2013).
Smoking among adolescents in the indigenous population of Australia is a major risk
factor for those diagnosed with asthma. Although overall rates of smoking have declined in
Australia, but the rate of smoking among Indigenous people in Australia has been
disproportionately high, at 17.5% against a percentage of 10.1% for non-indigenous
Australians (McCallum, et al., 2017). Asthma outcomes among the indigenous people are
rather poor due to smoking and they are deemed more likely to die due to asthma.
Exposure to allergens in the environment can cause asthma. Exposure to asthmagens
among the workforce at their work place could also cause asthma. In a study on occupational
exposure to 277 asthmagens, 4878 participants were surveyed. Among the men, exposure to
bioaerosols and metals was 29% and 27% respectively. While women were exposed to latex
and industrial cleaning agents and sterilizing agents (Fritschi, et al., 2016)

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Several airborne allergens may occur in homes. These include dust mites, molds-
particularly Alternaria and Cladospermum spores, cockroaches- Blatella germanica, pollen
grains that are disseminated by air, pets, rodent and rat pests are sources of house allergens
that can trigger an attack of allergic asthma in patients (Cipriani, Calamelli, & Ricci, 2017).
Use of pestcides has also been evidenced to cause asthma in children and adults.
Biological factors, such as change in levels of sex hormones, genetic predisposition,
and obesity also make people more likely to suffer from asthma. Pestcide exposure can
trigger irritation, immunosuppression, inflammation and endocrine disruption and make some
people more susceptible to asthma due to these biological alterations (Amaral, 2014).
In conclusion, it emerges that asthma can be caused by a variety of factors. The
incidence of asthma among non-indigenous population is lower than that in the indigenous
population. Fatal cases of asthma can be avoided but are prevent among people who live in a
rural or remote localities because they cannot access emergency services in time.
Psychosocial issues, poverty, poor awareness about how to access healthcare causes higher
morbidity among the poor people. Belonging to an indigenous group can increase the
likelihood of dependence on drugs, tobacco and alcohol. Tobacco smoke can trigger a bout of
asthma. A person's social status, mental health status may not cause adherence to medication
and this can worsen the disease and lead to mortality and morbidity. People already suffering
from mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia and others fail to tae
adequate treatment and often face mortality and higher morbidity than those who take
medication for prevention. The presence of allergens in the home or workplace environment
can trigger asthma. Occupational exposure to chemicals is a major trigger for asthma among
the workforce. The use of pesticides at home, in office or farms can also cause asthma if a
person is allergic to the chemicals. Use of farm pesticides can exacerbate the asthma among
the people employed for application of the chemicals if they are already suffering from

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asthma (Henneberger, et al., 2014). Immunosuppression and disruption of hormones or even
inflammation can occur in response to pesticides. An understanding of the factors that cause
asthma morbidity and mortality can help in managing the disease better.

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References
Amaral, A. F. (2014). Pesticides and Asthma: Challenges for Epidemiology. Frontiers in Public Health,
2, 6. http://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2014.00006.
Cipriani, F., Calamelli, E., & Ricci, G. (2017). Allergen Avoidance in Allergic Asthma. Frontiers in
Pediatrics, 5, 103. http://doi.org/10.3389/fped.2017.00103.
Fritschi, L., Crewe, J., Darcey, E., Reid, A., Glass, D., Benke, G., . . . Carey, R. (2016). The estimated
prevalence of exposure to asthmagens in the Australian workforce, 2014. BMC pulmonary
medicine, 16:48.
Goeman, D. P., Abramson, M. J., McCarthy, E. A., Zubrinich, C. M., & Douglass, J. A. (2013). Asthma
mortality in Australia in the 21st century: a case series analysis. BMJ Open, 3(5), e002539.
http://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2012-002539.
Henneberger, P., Liang, X., London, S., Umbach, D., Sandler, D., & Hoppin, J. (2014). Exacerbation of
symptoms in agricultural pesticide applicators with asthma. Internationalarchives of
occupational and environmental health, 87(4):423-32.
McCallum, G. B., Chang, A. B., Wilson, C. A., Petsky, H. L., Saunders, J., Pizzutto, S. J., & … Shah, S.
(2017). Feasibility of a Peer-Led Asthma and Smoking Prevention Project in Australian
Schools with High Indigenous Youth. Frontiers in Pediatrics, 5, 33.
Reddel, H., Sawyer, S., Everett, P., Flood, P., & Peters, M. (2015). Asthma control in Australia: a cross-
sectional web-based survey in a nationally representative population. The medical journal of
Australia, 202(9):492-7.