Control Classification of Asthma in Children: Ensuring Compliance

Abstract

Introduction: Asthma is classified primarily based on the level of control rather than the severity of the underlying illness process, as per the new GINA (Global Initiative for Asthma) guideline. Objective: To study the control classification in children visiting Asthma Clinic To correlate the control classification with disease progression Material and Methods: A prospective, cross-sectional observational study was conducted at a tertiary care hospital from January 2013 to December 2021. The revised GINA guidelines were used to diagnose 50 patients aged 7 to 15 with bronchial Asthma for this study. Patients’ medical histories and PFT (Pulmonary Function Test) outcomes were noted in a pre-designed form. They were enrolled on their first visit and followed up periodically with a three-monthly interval each. Results: GINA guideline’s control classification aided in analysis of the significant differences in the distribution of progression (χ2 = 34.195, p = <0.001). There were 29 (58.0 %) patients who were well-controlled, 21 (42.0%) not well controlled with no patients in the poorly controlled category. Conclusion: Optimizing control in asthmatic children would entail diligent counselling, adherence to therapy and strict compliance.