Living with severe asthma means living with the horror of severe asthma. Even life-threatening— Attacks can happen anywhere, anytime.
Lynn, a Canadian who has lived with the disease for 28 years, said she was trying to avoid “one day I’m going to have a seizure and nobody knows what to do with me.” .
Asthma wreaks havoc on individuals, with approximately 16 million people living with severe symptoms of the disease worldwide, and has a significant impact on healthcare systems and society.1
Approximately 16 million people worldwide live with severe symptoms of this disease, which has a significant impact on health care systems and society.1
Although people living with severe asthma account for only about 5-10 percent of cases worldwide, it accounts for more than 50 percent of asthma-related health care costs.1,2
Also, given the steadily increasing number of people living with asthma worldwide, understanding and improving prevention and control strategies for this disease is becoming increasingly important.
To investigate this further, the Copenhagen Institute for the Future (CIFS) Severe asthma index — It is the first of its kind independent instrument to assess the status of severe asthma treatment and support in approximately 30 OECD countries worldwide.
“We tracked several factors related to health policy, access and quality of care, clinical and population health indicators, and environmental factors that led to our conclusions,” said Bogi Eliasen, Director of Health, CIFS. explained. “Through this overview, we will help advocates, clinicians, public health officials and policy makers understand specific and targeted actions to improve care for people in communities suffering from severe asthma. I aim to.”
By assessing different country approaches to severe asthma across five diverse indicator categories, the index collects a variety of data sources to support a comprehensive analysis of severe asthma treatment and prevention approaches in each region. Did.
By assessing different country approaches to severe asthma across five diverse indicator categories, the index collects a variety of data sources to support a comprehensive analysis of severe asthma treatment and prevention approaches in each region. Did.
Key findings show clear differences across countries, with Australia having the highest score (73/100), followed by France, New Zealand, Italy and the United Kingdom.3 Conversely, Latvia scored the lowest (48/100), followed by Slovenia, Estonia, Belgium and Slovakia.3
Interestingly, while the survey results support some expectations, there were also situations where countries ranked higher. the following – more than expected.
For example, Australia’s ranking was predictably high due to its strong level of implementation of its asthma strategy and tobacco control policy.3 However, Finland (64.8/100) reported moderate implementation of its asthma strategy, limited alignment between treatment guidelines and international best practice, and limited access to treatment (specialist care and biologics). It ranks lower than expected as it is one of the countries with the lowest level of access.3
“We have found that the best indicator of a country’s performance is how strong the policy background it already has in place,” Eliasen said. “Countries with dedicated severe asthma strategies, comprehensive care guidelines and severe asthma registries tended to score higher on the index.”
To this end, the index shows that while most countries have some form of guideline for severe asthma, less than half of the countries have a national strategy for asthma control, prevention, and/or management. I discovered something.3
Although most countries have some form of guideline for severe asthma, fewer than half have national strategies for asthma control, prevention and/or management.3
“Changing alignment with internationally recognized best practices remains a limiting factor in access to treatment and this index indicates that many countries are developing a committed and harmonized asthma strategy. It clearly shows that we need to,” Eliasen explained.
Similar inconsistencies are found in reporting criteria and access to severe asthma-specific data, making it difficult to fully assess disease burden.3 “The lack of data like this and the inconsistency in recording the data was really surprising given the serious impact of this disease,” explained CIFS futurist Patrick Gallen. One such data area concerns the use of oral corticosteroids (OCS) to treat severe asthma. Chronic use of OCS may indicate poor control of patient disease, but most countries’ health systems are still unable to systematically track the use of these steroids, It can also have long-term adverse health effects on patients.
“The very absence of this indicator highlights the need for improved data collection and reporting on various aspects of severe asthma,” Galen added. “We need more data to ensure that OCS is included in future editions of the index.”
For patients, the most pressing concern in Japan, Greece, Estonia, Lithuania and Slovenia is the need for patient access in terms of access to telemedicine, access to specialists and access to appropriate diagnostic tools. The country of residence may also determine the level of access to treatment.3
“The issue is not the need for more resources, but the need for better allocation to provide consistent quality care,” Galen explained. “For example, more efficient treatment pathways and reimbursement policies, including access to biologics. Severe asthma treatment pillars — It can make a bigger difference in patient outcomes than other types of resource investment. “
Finally, the index reveals a need to reassess how patients receive empowering support, education and tools in the patient care process.3 The Index findings demonstrate the importance of policy makers looking at severe asthma as more than a clinical phenomenon. Patient outcomes and experiences influence and are influenced by numerous systemic, policy, and environmental factors. Here the need for a “system-wide” approach becomes apparent.
“Fixing one area is not enough. You have to understand the needs,” Eliasen added.
The current lack of a comprehensive and well-implemented national strategy for asthma (and even more lack of focus on severe asthma) presents a gap that policy makers urgently need to address. increase.
Changing the way severe asthma is defined, treated and prevented will require significant support from all stakeholders. Not only medical workers Severe asthma is a complex and burdensome chronic disease, and we are committed to addressing and prioritizing it.
MAT-GLB-2302405 v2.0 | July 2023
[1] O. Enilari, S. Sinha, “The Global Impact of Asthma in the Adult Population,” Ann Glob Health, vol 85(1), no. February 2019.
[2] Al Efraj, K. and JM FitzGerald, Current and new treatments for severe asthma. J Sorak Dis, 2015 7(11): p. E522-5.
[3] Copenhagen Futures Institute. (2023). Severe Asthma Index. [https://www.severeasthmaindex.org/]
