Asthma is a common and often disabling chronic disease that makes breathing difficult. Approximately 3 million Australians have asthma – 10% of the population. Asthma causes significant lifetime disability, has a high disease burden, and caused 455 deaths in Australia in 2016. Estimated direct and indirect costs to the Australian Government and businesses are $24.7 billion due to health care costs, productivity loss, reduced quality of life and premature death (Deloitte Access Economics, “Hidden Costs of Asthma”, 2015). Much of this burden comes from people with severe asthma who do not have control of their asthma symptoms despite high-dose treatment. Severe asthma is the focus of my research.
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