Only one other island has as many cases By LESTER CHANG – TGI Staff Writer More than a third of all Kaua’i public school students potentially have asthma, a dangerous disorder that can lead to death if untreated, says the
Only one other island has as many cases
By LESTER CHANG – TGI Staff Writer
More than a third of all Kaua’i public school students potentially have asthma, a dangerous disorder that can lead to death if untreated, says the American Lung Association of Hawai’i.
Kaua’i and Big Island have the highest number of adult and children asthma cases in the state, due to volcanic activity on Big Island and constant humidity and jungle growth on Kaua’i, said Deb Tomesko, the Kaua’i branch manager of the Lung Association.
Asthma, which is caused by an allergy to inhaled substances and stress, is the leading cause of absenteeism at schools in Hawai’i, according to the organization.
More than 100,000 Hawai’i residents, including 40,000 children, have asthma, the O’ahu-based organization reported. Nationwide, 26 million people have been diagnosed with asthma, including 8.6 million under the age of 18.
In severe cases, people can die.
Through new public education programs, officials with American Lung Association of Hawai’i hope to save lives and help state residents cope better with their disorder and live improved lives.
Medical records show 200 of the 600 students at Kapa’a Elementary School, the second-largest public school in the state, have asthma, Tomesko said. The finding suggests a third of all public school students on Kaua’i have the disorder, she said.
Gregg Kishaba, an American Lung Association official on O’ahu, said Hawai’i has “one of the highest prevalence rates for asthma for adults and children in the nation.”
“We have the volcanoes. We have year-around good weather, which means that there is high humidity, which leads to high pollen counts, lots of mold, mildew and cockroaches, which are triggers for asthma attacks,” Kishaba said.
New York also reported a strikingly high number of asthma cases, Kishaba said. The hardest-hit are poor people who don’t seek treatment, he said.
Death can occur if asthma is not treated. A young Kaua’i mother drove to Wilcox Hospital with her 11-year-old child after an asthma attack and passed out before she could get to the hospital. The child drove her stricken mother to the hospital, where the woman died, Tomesko said.
In another incident, a 36-year-old man with asthma choked while sleeping and died, Tomesko said.
“He was on inhalers, but he also was a smoker,” she said. “It was not the right combination.”
People can be pre-disposed to asthma or they can develop the condition as a result of exposure to environmental conditions, Kishaba said. Household dust, smoke, pet dander and emotional stress trigger asthma attacks, he said.
Cane-burning once contributed to asthma cases in Hawai’i, Tomesko said, but the number of cases dropped because that activity slackened with the decline of the sugar industry.
Asthma attacks can be prevented or mitigated through education, parents and their children working with doctors on the right treatment, prescribed medication, allergy injections and bronchial dilators, Tomesko said.
Asthma symptoms include wheezing, watery eyes, hives, shortness of breath, tightness in the chest and coughing.
The Lung Association is sponsoring the Open Airways for Schools project, a free nationwide program to teach children how to detect the warning signs of asthma and ways to prevent an attack.
Officials said the program has helped decrease the number and of severity of children’s asthma attacks and increase their grades, both of which can help raise a child’s self-esteem.
With the help of volunteers on Kaua’i, the program was implemented last year at Koloa, ‘Ele’ele, King Kaumuali’i and Wilcox elementary schools. Tomesko said officials hope to expand the program to Kapa’a, Kekaha, Kilauea,a Waimea Canyon and Hanalei elementary schools.
The Lung Association also is the sponsor of Asthma Sports Day Camp at Lydgate Park, scheduled for June 29 to July 1. The event is for children 5 to 12 years old with moderate to severe asthma, and is intended to help them with “asthma management skills,” Tomesko said.
Recreational activities, sports clinics and crafts are planned, Tomesko said.
Staff writer Lester Chang can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) and mailto:lchang@pulitzer.net
