Knowledge and perceptions on childhood asthma among care-takers of children with asthma at a National Referral Hospital in Western Kenya: a descriptive study

Abstract

BackgroundIdentifying knowledge gaps in asthma self-management and identifying existing myths is an important step in determining appropriate health education and demystifying the myths so as to enhance asthma control.ObjectiveTo identify existing knowledge gaps and perceptions among the caregivers of asthmatic children.MethodsA cross sectional study was done among caretakers of asthmatic children aged 6–11 years at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital. Data on knowledge and perceptions among caretakers was collected using a questionnaire.ResultsA total of 116 caretakers were recruited of whom 71.6% were mothers. Although 60% of the caretakers had asthma medications at home, only a third felt their children were asthmatic. Eighty four (72.4%) had basic asthma knowledge. Syrups were preferred to inhalers by 70.7%, with 64.7% believing that inhalers were for the very sick. Only 36 (31%) felt preventer medications in asthma were necessary. Acceptance of asthma as a diagnosis and presence of asthma drugs were significantly associated with better knowledge of asthma, p-values 0.015 and 0.009 respectively.ConclusionMost caregivers perceive syrups to be better despite having good basic knowledge on asthma. There is need to address asthma perceptions among caretakers in resource poor settings which is likely to improve control.

Knowledge, attitudes and quality of life of caregivers towards asthma in their children: a Nigerian perspective

“…Another study documented that caregivers' attainment of post-secondary education was significantly associated with good knowledge about childhood asthma (20). It is necessary to tailor the asthma education to the educational level of caregivers (26).…”

“…Some caregivers might have a lower threshold for doctor consultation as they believe that any delay would be detrimental to the child's health (34). The attitudes toward asthma, if positive, can improve control (26).…”

Ebeveynlerin Alerjik Astım Nedenleri Hakkındaki Bilgi Düzeylerinin ve Uygulanan Tedaviye Yaklaşımlarının Değerlendirilmesi

“…Simba ve arkadaşlarının astımlı hastaya bakım vericilerle yaptığı bir anket çalışmasında, astımı tetikleyen etkenler sorgulandığında %56.9 oranında kötü kokulu kimyasallar, % 87.07 oranında soğuk hava ve % 62.93 oranında güçlü parfümlerin astımlı hastayı tetiklediği cevabı alınmıştır (15). Çok az sayıda kişi (% 21.55 ) duygusal stres, (% 47.4) egzersiz, (% 11.21) hamamböceği ve (% 9.48 ) aspirin / ibuprofen şıkkını işaretlemişlerdir.…”

Systematic review on epidemiology, interventions and management of noncommunicable diseases in acute and emergency care settings in Kenya

“…This is an update from our PROSPERO protocol that was published in 2015 [ 16 ], in which we have included publications between 2015 and December 2020. As a result of re-running our search strategy, we ended up with 439 de-duplicated records, and 14 additional publications after exclusions were made by title and abstract, and subsequently by full text [ [54] , [55] , [56] , [57] , [58] , [59] , [60] , [61] , [62] , [63] , [64] , [65] , [66] , [67] ] (see Table 3 ). Review for inclusion of articles was conducted independently by two members of the team, and ratified by a third reviewer, as previously detailed in the methods section of the paper.…”