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Study debunks Katrina Cough

Respiratory Care Weekly, April 19, 2006

Some health authorities claimed that waste-and lack of waste removal-from Hurricane Katrina coupled with the mix of silt, construction debris, and mold in houses caused a syndrome called Katrina Cough. But WWLTV in Louisiana reported that state epidemiologist Raoult Ratard said despite the conditions that might lend themselves to increased respiratory illness, the area's emergency-room admissions show that they were about the same as the rest of the country's after the storm.

He revealed the statistics Tuesday in a press conference announcing the release of a study conducted by state health authorities and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which also analyzed outpatient visits to clinics and hospitals with an eye toward chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma exacerbations. While the indoor mold left behind in the wake Katrina's flooding has affected many of the city's residents mildly, Ratard said in the WWLTV report that it wasn't cause for excessive emergency room visits.

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