'Almost a third of asthmatic young adults ignoring Covid norms'

New York, Dec 10 (IANS) Awareness of guidelines to prevent Covid-19 is high among young asthma sufferers, but around a third of them do not comply with the measures, researchers have warned.The results, published in the Journal of Asthma, also reveal that a fifth of asthmatics believe they have no risk of suffering from Covid-19."While asthma patients can be assumed to be at higher risk of developing respiratory complications from Covid-19, little is known about their adherence to prevention measures," said study author Francisco Vazquez-Nava from the Autonomous University of Tamaulipas in Mexico.To find out more, the research team surveyed 2,372 young adults aged 16-24 years from the Tampico-Madero-Altamira area, northwest of Mexico City, via an emailed questionnaire.The researchers found that more than half (53.1 per cent) of all respondents were not complying with the guidelines for Covid-19 prevention.Of those with asthma (12.2 per cent), 100 per cent were aware of the guidelines and measures established to prevent Covid-19 but 30.8 per cent said they did not comply with them.A fifth (20.4 per cent) of asthmatic participants believed they had no risk of suffering from Covid-19, and 3.8 per cent stated that the disease did not exist.Being male, a smoker and believing that Covid-19 is not more severe for people suffering from asthma made respondents less likely to follow measures for the prevention of Covid-19.The study also found that 44.3 per cent of patients with asthma hadn't received instructions from their doctor about the measures they should take to prevent Covid-19."Our results show that a substantial percentage of asthma patients do not comply with Covid-19 mitigation measures," the study authors wrote."It's important that people who suffer from asthma be advised by a health professional during the Covid-19 outbreak regarding compliance with basic measures of protection against the disease and the timely use of medications for asthma control," they concluded.
--IANS bu/dpb