Burden of asthma among inner-city children from Southern Brazil

• Published in: The Journal of asthma Vol. 53; no. 5; p. 498
• Main Authors: Roncada, Cristian, de Oliveira, Suelen Goecks, Cidade, Simone Falcão, Sarria, Edgar Enrique, Mattiello, Rita, Ojeda, Beatriz Sebben, Dos Santos, Beatriz Regina Lara, Gustavo, Andréia da Silva, Pinto, Leonardo Araújo, Jones, Marcus Herbert, Stein, Renato Tetelbom, Pitrez, Paulo Márcio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 01.06.2016
• Subjects: Absenteeism; Adolescent; Allergens - administration & dosage; Animals; Asthma - epidemiology; Asthma - immunology; Asthma - physiopathology; Brazil - epidemiology; Child; Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Humans; Male; Prevalence; Pyroglyphidae - immunology; Quality of Life; Respiratory Function Tests; Schools; Sedentary Lifestyle; Skin Tests; Surveys and Questionnaires; Urban Population - statistics & numerical data; prevalence; allergy; childhood; Atopy; Latin America
• ISSN: 1532-4303
• DOI: 10.3109/02770903.2015.1108438

To assess the impact of asthma in a population of inner-city Brazilian children. In a cross-sectional study, we selected children with asthma and healthy controls from public schools (8-16 years) from a capital city of Southern Brazil. Divided into three phases, questionnaires were administered, assessing lung function, body mass index and allergic sensitization. From 2500 children initially included in the study (48.4% males; mean age of 11.42 ± 2.32 years), asthma prevalence was detected in 28.6% (715/2500). The disease was not controlled in 42.7% (305/715) of the children, with 7.6% of hospitalization rate. School absenteeism (at least one day of missing school because of asthma) and sedentary behavior were high (57.1 and 67.2%, respectively), with 47.9% of subjects requiring oral steroids in the previous year, and physical well-being significantly lower than controls, directly interfering with quality of life, and therefore in the daily activities of these students. Moreover, 38% of the parents admitted to being non-adherent to treatment with their children and 31.1 and 53.6%, respectively, believed that rescue medication and exercise might be harmful. The burden of asthma in Brazilian children seems to be substantial. New international guidelines with a special focus in developing countries settings, with more pragmatic approaches, should be a priority for discussion and implementation actions.