Ontario Lung Association offers new resource to help parents manage their
child's asthma

TORONTO , Jan. 14 /CNW/ - Parents of children with asthma can breathe easier thanks to a free new resource now available to help them manage their child's disease. The Ontario Lung Association and the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) released Thursday the third edition of the popular book, Asthma in Children, a comprehensive guide to pediatric asthma management written by Dr. Tom Kovesi .

Kovesi, a pediatric respirologist at CHEO, has written the third edition to ensure parents understand the current best treatment options for managing their child's asthma. "When a parent sees his or her child struggle to breathe, it can be frightening," says Kovesi. "Having the proper tools, including asthma education, reduces a parent's fear and lets families control the asthma, so the asthma doesn't control them."

What is asthma?

Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease that is characterized by coughing, shortness of breath, wheezing and a feeling of chest tightness. Asthma symptoms can flare up if a person is exposed to one of their known triggers such as: allergens, pets, smoke and viral infections (colds). These triggers can cause inflammation and/or tightening of the airways, which can lead to asthma symptoms. While there is no cure for asthma, the disease can be well controlled through daily monitoring and medication.

Asthma rates in children

    
    - Nearly 21% of children ages 0 - 14 have physician diagnosed asthma(1)
    - Asthma continues to be a leading cause of hospitalization for children
      in Canada, accounting for 10% of all admissions in the 0 - 4 age group
      and 8% of all admissions for children aged 5 - 14.(2)
    

How to order Asthma in Children

The 52-page book Asthma in Children includes a fold out asthma diary and is a free resource to Ontario families made available through the Ontario Lung Association. People interested in obtaining a copy can call The Lung Association's Asthma Action(TM) Helpline at 1-888-344-LUNG (5864) or visit www.on.lung.ca

About Dr. Tom Kovesi

Tom Kovesi, MD, FRCPC, is a pediatric respirologist at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa and associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Ottawa .

Dr. Kovesi has been a member of the Canadian Pediatric Asthma Consensus Guidelines Committee since 1996 and is past chair of the Pediatric Assembly of the Canadian Thoracic Society.

He is a member of the executive of the Ontario Thoracic Society (the medical arm of Ontario Lung Association) and is the medical advisor for the Ontario Lung Association's Asthma Education Centre in Ottawa .

About Ontario Lung Association

The Lung Association is one of Canada's oldest voluntary, not-for-profit health-promotion organizations. The Lung Association is concerned with the prevention and control of asthma, chronic lung disease caused by smoking and with air quality and its effect on lung health. The Ontario Lung Association was incorporated in 1945 and has community offices across the province.

Visit the Ontario Lung Association online at www.on.lung.ca, or call 1-888-344-LUNG for more information.

    
    (1) Institute for Clinical Evaluative Studies (ICES) website
        http://intool.ices.on.ca
    (2) Life and Breath: Respiratory Disease in Canada; Public Health Agency
        of Canada; 2007
    

/NOTE TO PHOTO EDITORS: A photo accompanying this release is available at http://photos.newswire.ca. Images are free to accredited members of the media/

For further information: Media enquiries: Karen Petcoff, Ontario Lung Association, o) [phone] ext. 283, c) [phone]; Marie Belanger, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO), o) [phone]