Doctors fear haze's long-term effects [WATCH]

KUALA LUMPUR: General practitioners (GPs) are seeing more patients with respiratory complaints, but private hospitals say they are coping with the haze for now.

With the haze expected to linger for two more weeks, doctors are concerned about the effects of prolonged exposure to polluted air, particularly among vulnerable individuals.

Symptoms include coughing, throat irritation, blocked or runny nose, eye irritation, wheezing and asthma exacerbations.

Federation of Private Medical Practitioners' Associations president Dr G. Shanmuganathan said GPs were seeing more patients with symptoms associated with poor air quality.

"If unhealthy air quality persists for another month, GP clinics should anticipate increasing consultations for cough, throat and eye irritation, wheezing, asthma exacerbations and worsening of existing conditions.

"The concern is not simply one day of exposure. It is repeated exposure over several weeks, particularly among vulnerable individuals," he told the New Straits Times.

Dr Shanmuganathan said, however, it was important to distinguish these symptoms from upper respiratory tract infections (URTI).

He said the haze did not cause viral URTI, but symptoms could overlap and pollution could aggravate existing respiratory illnesses.

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"From the primary-care perspective, if this episode is expected to persist until this month, it would also be useful for the Health Ministry to monitor respiratory attendances in both public and private primary care.

"This would give us an objective picture of the health burden of prolonged haze exposure, rather than having to rely on anecdotal reports from individual clinics."

Meanwhile, Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia president Datuk Dr Kuljit Singh said private hospitals were not seeing any significant increase in admissions linked to the haze.

He said private hospitals were managing respiratory and haze-related cases well and had the capacity to respond should patient numbers increase.

He said there was no pressure on bed occupancy or respiratory wards at present.

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Dr Kuljit said this was supported by close collaboration between private hospitals, public hospitals and the Health Ministry, allowing for appropriate referrals and coordinated care when required.

"We typically see fluctuations in influenza cases several times throughout the year, and this trend is observed across both private and public hospitals.

"While haze does not directly cause influenza, exposure to poor air quality can aggravate existing respiratory conditions and symptoms, including those associated with influenza and bronchitis."

Dr Kuljit said the association continued to work closely with the ministry to ensure patients received appropriate care and that the healthcare system remained prepared should respiratory and haze-related cases increase further.