In view of World Astham Day, Dr Tárrega has warned that COVID-19 could aggravate normal asthma symptoms, especially among patients who struggle to manage their chronic condition.  

 

It is estimated that in Spain, between 5% and 10% of adults suffer from asthma, a figure that rises to 20% among children. According to Tárrega, “50% of asthma sufferers fail to follow their treatment correctly, which leads to poor management of their condition”.

 

The pneumologist believes that the asthmatic population taking oral steroids may suffer more if they were to catch COVID-19 as it carries a greater viral load, as seen in other recent cases of viremia.

 

However, the lecturer has also assured that so far, asthma sufferers have not been too severely affected by COVID-19, so the precautions they should take are the same as those recommended for the general population, as long as they continue to follow their asthma treatment correctly.