For decades, Professor Heather Zar has been at the cutting edge of research into the health of children in South Africa. Last month she received the European Respiratory Society’s lifetime achievement award in paediatrics. Biénne Huisman chatted to Zar about her career, the remarkable Drakenstein Child Health Study, and the urgent need to ensure access to new RSV vaccines in Africa.
In South Africa we see a disproportionate number of children with severe asthma and as the prevalence of asthma has risen over the years, so did the severity. Data now suggests although prevalence is still high in children, it may be stabilising. However, problems with asthma control, under-diagnosis, and incorrect use of medicine remain. Elri Voigt investigates.
Asthma is a disease that can be easily controlled through the correct use of medications, yet in many low-and-middle-income countries like South Africa, many still die due to lack of effective management of this disease. According to estimates from the Global Asthma Report 2022, South Africa ranks third out of 28 low-and-middle-income countries for asthma-related mortality. Elri Voigt unpacks the state of asthma in the country.
In August last year, the South African Pollen Monitoring Network expanded pollen monitoring efforts in the country. The data now being collected can assist researchers, doctors, and people with pollen allergies. Elri Voigt explores these efforts and the impact pollen has on the lives of people in South Africa.
Lockdown has been difficult for most people in South Africa, but residents in the South Durban Basin describe their experiences as tantamount to a health hostage situation as they are caught between polluted air from petrochemical industries and the COVID-19 virus. Nomfundo Xolo investigates.
