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A profile of asthma and its management in a New South Wales provincial centre
Author(s) -
Marks Guy B,
Mellis Craig M,
Peat Jennifer K,
Woolcock Ann J,
Leeder Stephen R
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1994.tb125829.x
Subject(s) - medicine , asthma , interquartile range , wheeze , quartile , quality of life (healthcare) , physical therapy , pediatrics , population , peak flow meter , bronchial hyperresponsiveness , respiratory disease , environmental health , confidence interval , nursing , lung
Objective To describe aspects of the manifestations and management of asthma in a community setting. Design Cross‐sectional survey. Setting A NSW provincial centre in October 1991. Participants Ninety‐eight adults, identified from a population survey, with wheeze, shortness of breath, or cough, in the past year, and either airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) or a reported doctor's diagnosis of asthma. Main outcome measures Histamine challenge test to measure AHR; asthma quality of life questionnaire (AQLQ) score (with the maximum score of 10 corresponding with lowest quality of life); need for medical attention or time off work; medical management and self‐management of asthma; and the extent of β2‐agonist use. Results Of the 98 participants, 74 had had asthma diagnosed by their doctor, 34 had perennial asthma, and 30 had required medical attention or had missed work because of asthma in the preceding year. The median AQLQ score was 1.0 (interquartile range, 0.6‐1.8). Inhaled steroids were used by 17 participants who accounted for 23% of those with med ically diagnosed asthma, 32% of those with perennial asthma, 17% of those with moderate or severe AHR, 40% of those who had required medical atten tion or missed work because of asthma in the preceding year, and 31 % of those with AQLQ scores in the top quartile. Only 18 participants owned a peak flow meter; seven had a written self‐management plan; 18 stated they would respond to worsening asthma by starting or increasing treatment with inhaled steroids, and six would start therapy with orally administered steroids. Twelve had never used β2‐agonists and only five had purchased more than 12 β2‐agonist inhalers in the preceding year. Conclusions: The spectrum of asthma in this community sample included many adults with mild disease and few with severe disease. Many were not managed in accordance with the recommendations of the Asthma Management Plan, but overuse of β2‐agonists was not an important public health problem in this community.