On 2 May 2017, the China Asthma Alliance and the China Asthma Research Network held a press conference on “World Asthma Day 2017” in Beijing. Professor Jiangtao Lin, Director-general of the China Asthma Alliance, Head of China Asthma Research Network, a council member of the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA), and a consultant physician at the Department of Respiratory Diseases, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, attended the conference and delivered a keynote speech. More than 30 media outlets, including newspapers, journals, televisions and websites, attended the event.
The theme for this year’s World Asthma Day is “Better Air, Better Breathing”. For the change from the theme “You Can Control Your Asthma” used in the last decade, Professor Jiangtao Lin explained: “Bronchial asthma develops from an interaction between genetic and environmental factors. Exacerbation and onset of asthma are also linked to a variety of influencing factors. Among others, environment factors are very important. The decision towards an updated theme is to raise the community and the public concern for environmental protection.”
For the dissemination of the World Asthma Day, a great number of provincial and municipal hospitals throughout the country took an active part in related social sessions, such as health education and free clinic consultation, organized for the benefit of patients.
