MedWire News: There are significant local UK variations in the number of emergency hospital admissions for children with asthma, indicating that services for children with the respiratory condition are not of a consistently high standard, a report shows.

The findings, released by Asthma UK to coincide with World Asthma Day on 6th May, suggest a 'postcode lottery' in the quality of care provided for children with the airway disease.

Every 16 minutes in the UK, a child is admitted to hospital suffering from asthma symptoms. But around 75% of emergency admissions are preventable with effective asthma management and routine care, says Asthma UK.

The organisation found that in England, for example, the north-west region had the highest number of emergency admissions for children with asthma, while the south-eastern region had the lowest.

Indeed, the number of children admitted to hospital for asthma symptoms in the Liverpool primary care trust was around eight-times higher than the number who received emergency treatment in the Richmond and Twickenham primary care trust.

Other primary care trusts with high admission rates included Knowsley, Oldham and Heart of Birmingham, while others with low admission rates included Berkshire West, Hillingdon and West Essex.

In light of the findings, Asthma UK is calling on the government to reduce the number of unnecessary asthma admissions by ensuring all children have equal access to high-quality asthma services wherever they live.

Neil Churchill, chief executive of Asthma UK, said: "These figures paint a disturbing picture of the impact of asthma on children's lives, suggesting that not all children are getting the same access to vital asthma services, such as a local specialist asthma nurse.

"These divisions are unacceptable, particularly the staggering eight-fold difference in admissions in England. If asthma is not controlled effectively, the effects can be devastating and in some cases fatal."

He added that the findings are "a wake-up call to health services and governments about the costs and consequences of unnecessary hospital admissions".