More than 100 million Nigerians would suffer from asthma by the year 2025, the Chairman, Board of Trustees, Amaka Chiwuike-Uba Foundation, ACUF, Dr Chiwuike Uba, has said.
He made the disclosure while briefing newsmen on the maiden annual asthma conference and launch of Amaka Chiwuike-Uba Foundation (ACUF) in Enugu.
He said estimates by international health organisations also show that over 15 million Nigerians have asthma and that about five percent of the figure are children.
Uba said that in spite of the availability of drugs, significant number of patients still suffer and die from asthma.
He said an estimated 75 per cent hospital admissions for asthma and as many as 90 percent of the asthma deaths were preventable, adding that “painfully Nigeria has lost many gifted and illustrious sons and daughters including Mrs Amaka Chiwuike-Uba prematurely to asthma.”
According to him, the annual asthma conference slated for July 6th was organised by the foundation to create awareness about asthma.
The ACUF is organised and funded in collaboration with the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Knowledge and Policy Management Initiative (KAPOMI), Nigerian Thoracic Society (NTS) and Human Rights Volunteer Corps (HRVC), according to Uba.
Uba said that ACUF was set up in November 2016 in memory of Mrs Amaka Chiwuike-Uba, as a charitable organisation to continue the very ideals she lived for and help asthma patients live a better life.
An Associate Professor/Reader of Medicine and a Consultant Respiratory Physician, Dr Cajethan C. Onyedum, said that studies have shown that many Nigeria institutions lack capacity to manage asthma.
Dr. Onyedum, who is also the Chairman, Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Enugu State
Chapter, said that asthma was one of the non-communicable diseases that was increasing in prevalence and mortality, despite all the medical knowledge about its management.
The NMA chairman explained that “most of the figures you have been given here are not our figures; some of them are done outside the country, and even those done within this country are hospital-based figures. What I’m saying is that this is a tip of the iceberg because when you do any community survey we are going to get increasing prevalence of asthma.”
National Coordinator, Human Rights Volunteer Corps of Nigeria (HRVC), Mr Larry Oguego, assured that the corps would raise volunteers who will work both in the long term and short term in spreading the news that asthma is a battle that Nigerians can fight and win. (Daily Trust)