The prevalence of asthma in children of elementary school age in Western New York

Abstract

To determine the prevalence of caregiver-reported asthma in children 4 to 13 years old in metropolitan western New York State, surveys were conducted during 1997-1999 in the Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Iroquois, and Gowanda school systems. Questionnaires (3,889) were sent to the homes of elementary school children in nine schools in western New York. The caregivers were asked to complete a 13-item questionnaire for the child. Of the questionnaires, 60.5% (2,353/3,889) were completed.Of all children, 18% had physician-diagnosed asthma. Of children diagnosed with asthma, 86% were taking medication. Symptoms were consistent with suspected undiagnosed asthma for 13% of the children. Buffalo had the highest rate of diagnosed asthma (20%) for the age group. Gowanda had a prevalence of 18%, Iroquois 16%, and Niagara Falls 15%. Variations were observed in asthma prevalence rates among different racial/ ethnic groups. In general, boys had a significantly (P = .001) increased odds of being asthmatic compared with girls. Overall, African-Americans and Hispanic/Latino children had significantly (P = .012 and P = .005, respectively) higher asthma prevalence rates, two to five times those of their Caucasian peers. In Gowanda, the prevalence of diagnosed asthma among Native American children was 23%, compared to 15% among Caucasian children. Of diagnosed Native American children, 71% were female. In Gowanda, a significant association (P = .007) of asthma among children in split-grade classes was observed compared to nonsplit grades. Of Native American children in split grades, 60% were diagnosed asthmatics. These observations reveal a high prevalence of asthma in the age group of 4 to 13 year olds in western New York. Local variations in potential triggers of asthma need to be considered when advising asthmatics. The results suggest that some grades have a disproportionate amount of children with asthma. The implications of asthma for children's early education need to be examined further.The authors are from

Knowledge and Use of Ethnomedical Treatments for Asthma Among Puerto Ricans in an Urban Community

“…In Buffalo, New York, where this study was conducted, Hispanics, most of whom are of Puerto Rican descent, are more likely to have asthma than African Americans, and asthma prevalence among Hispanic children is twice that of white children. 19,20 Cornerstones of asthma management include lifestyle adjustments and conventional pharmacologic medications. Studies have found as many as 72% to 89% of Hispanics use or are aware of ethnomedical, complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), and home or folk remedies for asthma.…”

Mode of delivery at birth and development of asthma: A population-based cohort study

“…This is important because ethnicity is a significant confounding factor for the relationship between mode of delivery and asthma incidence, and this concern was inadequately addressed. [18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29] For misclassification bias, all previous studies used a questionnaire to define asthma status of the subjects, but only 1 study ascertained asthma status on the basis of incident diagnoses of asthma derived from the International Classification of Diseases (version 8) and Read codes (codes commonly used in general practitioner practices in England). 14 A significant discrepancy (eg, 21%) between doctors' diagnosis of asthma and parental report on asthma as well as children and adult perceptions of childhood asthma has been reported.…”

Prevalence of Asthma Symptoms in A Screened School-Age Population of Poor Children in Houston, Texas (1997–1998)

“…5,9,13,14,17,18 However, we also found that 51% of children with parent-reported wheeze had no diagnosis of asthma or RAD. Having wheezing symptoms without a diagnosis varied by race/ethnicity, but the absence of diagnosis was uniformly high (45%-52.23%).…”

“…1 The reported prevalence of childhood asthma has varied widely (3%-20%), depending on case definition and population. [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] Studies consistently report higher prevalence among African American children than among their white counterparts, and suggest a higher prevalence in inner-city children 1,5,9,10,13,14 than in other groups. However, estimates for Hispanic children have varied depending on ethnic origin and location.…”

“…However, estimates for Hispanic children have varied depending on ethnic origin and location. [3][4][5]9,[15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] Trend data consistently indicate increasing prevalence of asthma, especially among innercity minority children. 4,8,18,21,24 To intervene effectively with case-finding and treatment referral, those children truly at risk must be identified.…”