Regional asthma hospitalization rates and global asthma mortality rate in Chilean children

In recent years, there has been a significant increase in asthma hospitalization rates in children, however, regional and mortality rates are yet unknown. Objective: To determine regional asthma hospitalization rates in children and the global mortality rate in this age group. Patients and Method: We determined asthma hospitalization rates in the 15 regions of the country existing at the time of the study, between 2008 and 2014, based on the number of hospital discharges in each region and the population at risk of hospitalization. The mortality rate was obtained using the ratio between deaths due to asthma in children aged 5 to 15 and the exposed population. Results: the 5th region presented the highest hospitalization rate (7.6 per 10,000 inhabitants). Except for 4 regions, the median hospitalization rates of the different regions were similar to those found in the Metropolitan Region. The overall mortality rate due to asthma in 5 to 15-year-old children was 0.37 per 100,000 inhabitants in the analyzed period. Conclusions: most regions of the country have similar hospitalization rates to the Metropolitan Region and the 5th region presents the highest hospitalization rate due to asthma. The global mortality rate in children between 5 and 15 years old is 0.37 per 100,000 inhabitants.