Research reveals that parent's depression may cause their child's asthma care to suffer. Thus, the study suggests that to get a child's asthma under control, a parent's mental health should be assessed.
A study entitled "The Impact of Caregiver Depression on Child Asthma Outcomes: Pathways and Mechanisms," done by researchers at University of Texas Southwestern found that curing a parent's depression could result in better symptom control in asthmatic children.
The investigators followed parents and caregivers with major depressive disorder and their children with persistent asthma for a year, and they saw that improvement in parent's depression was connected with the decrease in their children's asthma attacks and improved asthma control, which partly occurred because the severity of their children's depressive symptoms got lessened.
Stress and depression in asthmatic children can cause airway constriction and worsen symptoms. This poor asthma control can then aggravate the kid's depression.
High rates of depression among parents can add stress on the kids, which can result in their depressive symptoms and worsening asthma control.
Association of mental health and asthma
"Asthma is a medical illness that is sensitive to a patient's mood as well as medication adherence. It might be useful to screen for depression both in children with asthma and their caregivers," according to Dr. E. Sherwood Brown, a professor of psychiatry, in a university release.
Thus, the doctor suggested that health care providers need to think more broadly when treating asthmatic patients, US News reported.
Dr. Andrew Gelfand, a UT Southwestern pulmonologist who is not involved in the study, stated that lung disorder experts often see depression in their higher-risk asthma patients. For cases like these, psychiatrists will be brought in or medications will be increased if no improvements are seen on the patient's asthma symptoms.
Therefore, Gelfand declared that the recent study opens another opportunity to screen for and improve asthmatic patient care. It will not only be the patient's mental health that can be cured, but screening their parents for depression can also be a crucial step in improving the conditions of poorly controlled asthmatics.
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Asthma of kids can incur depression to parents
There are about 4,000 Americans that die from asthma every year, and about 8 percent of American children have asthma. Symptoms of asthma include shortness of breath, wheezing, and coughing due to inflammation of the lungs and airways.
In a separate study that looked into the impact of kids' asthma control to their mother's mental health, the results revealed that moms of asthmatic children have significant symptoms of depression. Taking care of a kid with asthma has a significant impact on the mother's mental health and depression was extensive among mothers of asthmatic children. Improving the asthma control level of the kids did not promote maternal mental health.
The study concluded that mental health and quality of life of parents of children with asthma will be helpful. A doctor's awareness of depression and the presence of a psychotherapist to diagnose and treat depression in mothers of children with asthma is crucial to come up with effective interventions.
Related Article: Causes of Mental Health Illness in Adolescence: Childhood Chronic Illness, Asthma, Bullying, and Health-Related Absenteeism
