Why a respiratory doctor expects an increase in hospital admissions today

A respiratory doctor expects to see an increase in hospital admissions today as a result of the smoke haze blanketing parts of Melbourne.

At midday, the EPA rated the air quality on Lilydale as ‘extremely poor’, while air quality was ‘very poor’ in Dandenong, as a result of planned burns.

Respiratory physician at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, Dr Lou Irving, says there will likely be a “blip” in presentations for asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, as well as out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, as a result.

Dr Irving said vulnerable people in areas where the air quality is very poor should take precautions.

“People who … are fragile to poor air quality — for example chronic lung disease, asthma, heart disease — should stay inside,” he told Neil Mitchell.

“In fact, even people without those problems should not be exercising vigorously outside if the air quality of extremely poor.

“We breathe in about 11,000 litres of air a day but if we exercise we can double that and it means the exposure to these tiny particles can be quite significant.”

Dr Irving says poor air quality accounts for more than 5000 premature deaths in Australia each year.

Press PLAY below to hear about the health risks posed by today’s smoke 

Why a respiratory doctor expects an increase in hospital admissions today