In a recent study published in JAMA Network Open , researchers investigate the association between population-level coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mitigation strategies, including vaccination rates and face mask mandates, and the prevalence of symptomatic asthma among children. Study: COVID-19 Vaccination and Parent-Reported Symptomatic Child Asthma Prevalence . Image Credit: SeventyFour / Shutterstock.
com Asthma was initially considered a significant risk factor for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and subsequent hospitalization caused by COVID-19. Health professionals were concerned that children with asthma would be particularly vulnerable during the pandemic. Some of the different measures that promoted or enforced social distancing during the initial stages of the pandemic were found to reduce children’s emergency visits and hospitalizations related to asthma.
Likewise, vaccination efforts in 2020 and 2021 significantly reduced the risk of being infected with SARS-CoV-2 for both children and adults. Vaccination against COVID-19 can confer additional protective benefits, such as reductions in asthma symptoms. However, these potential benefits have not been studied.
Furthermore, the relationship between exposure to illness caused by COVID-19, mitigation strategies, and symptomatic asthma among children remains unclear. Using a cross-sectional design and publicly available data, researchers examined state-level trends and associa.
