Premium
Predictors of hospitalization for asthma in children: Results of a 1‐year prospective study
Author(s) -
RodríguezMartínez Carlos E.,
SossaBriceño Mónica P.,
CastroRodriguez Jose A.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
pediatric pulmonology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.866
H-Index - 106
eISSN - 1099-0496
pISSN - 8755-6863
DOI - 10.1002/ppul.22936
Subject(s) - medicine , asthma , exacerbation , prospective cohort study , pediatrics , depression (economics) , population , confidence interval , hospital admission , emergency medicine , environmental health , economics , macroeconomics
Summary Introduction Although hospital admissions for pediatric asthma constitute a significant problem in high‐income countries, they are an even greater health problem in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMIC). However, previous studies that aimed to identify predictors of hospital admission for asthma in children have mainly been conducted in high‐income countries, and these findings might not be applicable to LMIC. Methods In a prospective cohort study, we aimed to identify predictors of hospital admission for asthma, including measures of parental knowledge about asthma and maternal depression level, in a population of children aged 1–18 years living in urban Bogota, Colombia hospitalized for acute asthma symptoms, over a 6‐month period. Results Out of the total of 101 included patients, 37 (36.6%) had at least one hospital admission for asthma during the year following admission. After controlling for the age of the patients, dog ownership in the previous 12 months, asthma severity variables in the previous 6 months, maternal allergic rhinitis, level of maternal education, and measures of parental knowledge about asthma and maternal depression level, we found that maternal smoking (IRR, 3.12; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.12–8.68; P = 0.029) was the only independent predictor of hospital admissions due to asthma exacerbations in the year following admission to the study. Conclusions In a population of asthmatic Latino children admitted to hospital for an asthma exacerbation, approximately one‐third of the patients had at least one hospital admission for asthma during the year following admission, and maternal smoking was the only independent predictor of these hospitalizations. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2014; 49:1058–1064. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.