Vietnam National Hospital’s Outpatient Department currently receives around 200 patients a day who come for respiratory-related examinations.
A child at the Vietnam National Hospital
Doctor Thi Hong Hanh, director of the hospital’s Respiratory Centre, said that children are not so easily able to adapt to sudden weather changes, which has caused them respiratory problems.
The centre receives around 30 patients who suffer from respiratory diseases, including pneumonia and bronchiolitis.
According to Doctor Nguyen Thi Le from the centre, bronchiolitis often happens to children aged below two. The disease with the symptoms of cough and breathing difficulty will bring about serious problems if not being timely detected and treated.
She took an 11-month-old child in Ha Nam Province as a typical example. The patient was self-treated at home after having the symptoms of having a runny nose and cough. However, her condition did not improve. She was then hospitalised in a critical condition and had to use a ventilator.
Many similar cases have also been reported at the hospital.
Parents are advised not to give antibiotics to their children, as it can result in the risk of antibiotic resistance.