Physicians at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia noticed a decrease in patients who were admitted for asthma emergencies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a new study, doctors there noted the drops were significant: the hospital and its care network witnessed a 60% decrease in daily asthma health care visits and an 83% decrease in steroid prescriptions. In-person visits, partially offset by new telehealth and phone appointments, decreased by 87% for outpatient visits and 84% for hospital visits.

“We saw less asthma events overall, severe and non-severe,” said study senior author Dr. David Hill, an assistant professor of pediatrics at University of Pennsylvania, and a pediatric allergist at the hospital. “We were surprised by that.”

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