PREDISPOSING FACTORS AND CLINICAL PROFILE OF ACUTE SEVERE ASTHMA

Abstract

A sthma is one of the common chronic respiratory diseases in childhood, with increasing prevalence in the past 3 decades. The severity of asthma can range from mild to severe; however, despite the degree of severity, all patients are at risk for developing an acute severe asthma exacerbation. Currently, severe acute asthma is the most common medical emergency in children and is responsible for nearly half a million admissions to pediatric intensive care units (PICUs) [1]. Current treatments, although helpful, are still unable to prevent childhood asthma exacerbations completely. There is a scarcity of data regarding the incidence of acute asthma exacerbation in children in India. In the United States, as per 2005 National Center for Health Statistics estimates, asthma prevalence was 22.5 million (7.7% of population) and exacerbations included approximately 15 million outpatient visits, 2 million emergency room visits, and 500,000 hospitalizations over 1 year [2]. In urban areas, asthma prevalence is increasing due to increase in environmental smoke and air pollution resulting from urbanization and industrialization. A study conducted in Bangalore city among <18 years of age showed that asthma prevalence increased to quite a great extent from 1979 (9%) to 1999 (29.5%) [3]. As there are limited studies in our country regarding acute severe asthma and its predisposing factors contributing for exacerbation, the present study was undertaken to know the predisposing factors and clinical profile of acute severe asthma in children. MATERIALS AND METHODS This prospective hospital-based study was carried out for 12 months between January 2015 and December 2015 in a teaching institution of South India. Prior approval from the institutional ethics committee was obtained and written consent/ assent was taken from the parents of the recruited children. Children between 5 and 18 years of age admitted to PICU of our hospital with symptoms and signs of acute severe asthma (as per Becker's score) were included in the study (Table 1). Children <5 years of age, whose symptoms were considered to be of infective origin, who were immunosuppressed and whose parents were unwilling to participate in the study were excluded. Sample size was taken by convenience. ABSTRACT Background: Asthma is a chronic inflammatory condition of the lung airways resulting in episodic airflow obstruction. It is also one of the leading causes of morbidity in children and hospital admissions. Current…