Ep. 154: What Providers Need to Know About Uncontrolled Asthma
Part of the series: Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Innovations Podcast
This podcast was made in partnership with Allergy & Asthma Network.
We thank Sanofi-Regeneron for sponsoring this episode. While they support the show, all opinions are our own, and sponsorship doesn’t influence our content or editorial decisions. Any mention of brands is for informational purposes and not an endorsement.
If you treat patients with asthma, this episode is for you. Not just allergists, but GPs, pediatricians, family medicine doctors, urgent care providers, and anyone who sees a patient with asthma in their practice.
Dr. Cherie Zachary, current president of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, joins Kortney and Dr. Payel Gupta to talk about why uncontrolled asthma remains a serious and largely preventable problem, and what providers can do differently starting with their next patient visit.
What we cover in our episode about bout uncontrolled asthma
The data behind the problem. ER visits, hospitalizations, and asthma deaths have not improved in years, and Dr. Zachary explains why that should concern every provider who treats asthma patients.
An ER visit is a treatment failure. Dr. Zachary makes the case that any asthma patient who ends up in urgent care or the emergency room should trigger an immediate reassessment of their treatment plan, not just a course of steroids and a send-home.
Five questions every provider should be asking. The episode walks through a standardized set of control questions designed to help providers catch uncontrolled asthma before it becomes a crisis, covering steroid use, ER visits, rescue inhaler use, nighttime waking, and daily activity limitations.
Why patients normalize their symptoms. Providers hear what controlled asthma should actually look like, and why patients often don't volunteer the information needed to catch a problem.
Who is most at risk. Dr. Zachary shares which patient populations are most likely to have uncontrolled asthma and least likely to be identified, and what providers can do to close that gap.
About our guest
Dr. Cherie Zachary is a board-certified allergist and immunologist and the current president of the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. With nearly four decades of clinical experience, she has dedicated her career to patient care across all ages, health equity, and leadership in the allergy and immunology field. Learn more about Dr. Zachary in our interview with her (YouTube)!
More resources about uncontrolled asthma
Timestamps
Our episode about food allergy bullying gives parents the tools they need to spot it and talk to their kids
01:47 Why uncontrolled asthma matters
03:11 Defining uncontrolled asthma
05:30 What providers are missing
07:55 Consistent asthma language
10:30 Why uncontrolled asthma is dangerous
14:50 Treatment failure explained
16:40 Asthma control questions
20:02 Waxing and waning asthma
26:15 Integrated healthcare systems
29:16 The five asthma control questions
32:17 Higher risk asthma patients
33:35 Reaching underserved patients
