Pollution makes children susceptible to respiratory infections: doctors

The morning after Diwali, 21-month-old Nyonika had to be rushed to hospital because of incessant coughing throughout the night. She was breathless and had chest

The morning after Diwali, 21-month-old Nyonika had to be rushed to hospital because of incessant coughing throughout the night. She was breathless and had chest congestion.

HT Image

“She started coughing a little on chhoti diwali (a day before Diwali) but we were not too worried because we thought she had the flu. But it got worse on the night of Diwali. We tried to keep her indoors, but she heard the crackers and kept going out to watch. She would come back coughing every time, and then she continued coughing throughout the night,” said Sushrita Mukherjee, her mother.

They live in Dubai and had come to India to visit relatives during the festive season. They had to cancel their return tickets because Nyonika got so sick.

“We have to nebulise her every day right now, but now that she is a little better we will leave India on Sunday. It would be hard for her to recover in this much pollution, and I do not see the situation getting better,” she said.

Sushrita’s mother, who they were visiting, is an asthmatic and had to be taken to a hospital the day after Diwali as well to manage her symptoms.

The high levels of air pollution have also led to severe respiratory tract infections in children. “The exposure to pollutants inflames the mucosal layer in the upper respiratory tract, which makes it susceptible to infections, which are already doing the rounds. And because children are more susceptible, they get recurrent infections, which further lead to lower immunity,” said Dr BK Tripathi, professor of medicine, Safdarjung hospital.

“I am a Delhi girl, I was raised here. We used to play outdoors all the time. And, even when there was pollution it was never this bad I think. I mean, you can see pollution right now. It was the first thing I noticed when I got off the flight,” Sushrita said.

Vanisha Goswami celebrated her first birthday with some balloons and a cake in a hospital bed on November 1. She was admitted to Max Hospital with a severe lung infection.

“She got sick the day after Diwali. At first, she was coughing a lot and then got a very high fever. She was not getting better and we had to take her to the doctor. She was on drips and could not even eat solid foods. She has been given some medicines and a nebuliser,” said Vikram Goswami, her father. He bought an air purifier to keep her safe at home and masks for himself and his wife.

“Viral fevers are common at this time of the year, but exposure to this much pollution in children leads to severe episodes with extreme chest congestion. They need regular medication and hospitalisation at times to get better,” said Dr Vinita Jain, her doctor and senior consultant of paediatric medicine at Max Hospital in Shalimar Bagh.

For nine-year-old Daksh Vohra, the coughing started after he inhaled a lot of smoke from burning paper and crackers. “He is scared of lighting crackers, so he put it in a newspaper and lit it. He took in a lot of smoke and started coughing continuously. Then he got a very high fever the day after Diwali, so we got him to the doctor,” said Rajesh Vohra, his father.

The number of such infections goes up every year after Diwali when pollution levels go up. “We see an increase in people with chest and respiratory infections, especially children and the elderly. This happens every year when pollution levels spike,” said Dr PS Narang, associate director of paediatrics at Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh.