D2.181 - Managing asthma and allergies during the Russo-Ukrainian war: The damage assessment

The full-scale invasion of Russian troops in Ukraine began on February 24, 2022. Recently, the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology supported the Task Force “Managing the upcoming increase in asthma prevalence caused by the war in Ukraine.” Unfortunately, the impact of the Russian invasion on asthma and allergy management has still been underestimated.

First, we analyzed the number of patients admitted to outpatient and inpatient departments in Ukraine in 2024 compared with 2018 in dynamics. To evaluate the management of asthma and allergies, we developed questionnaires for patients and health care professionals using Google Forms, which were distributed through social media. A total of 300 completed patient questionnaires were selected for analysis. The patients, aged 18 to 65 years, reported having allergic rhinitis, allergic conjunctivitis, allergic asthma), allergic dermatitis, and chronic urticaria. Of these patients, 95% continued to live in their original locations, whereas 5% had become refugees.

Most patients reported an increase in the severity of their allergic diseases. Regarding symptomatic therapy, most patients reported that availability remained unchanged, up to 20% noted a decrease, and up to 30% found it difficult to assess. Availability of specific immunotherapy was reported as unchanged by 50% of patients, and difficult to estimate – up to 20%. In addition, up to 20% of the patients did not understand the question. The availability of allergy diagnostics, such as specific IgE tests and skin prick tests, did not reveal a significant decrease.  However, only about 50% of the patients received all the necessary medical preparations for allergy treatment. All patients received care at medical institutions that were not damaged by the war.

Thus, the main challenges to the Ukrainian health care system in the field of allergology are as follows: (1) the reduction in the availability of allergy medical care; (2) a decrease in the supply of antiallergic drugs and immunotherapy preparations; and (3) a decrease in the availability of allergy diagnostic tests.