Prevalence and impact of asthma in children, Georgia, 2000

Background: Asthma is a common chronic condition with significant impact on those who have it. Information about children with asthma was sought to guide state program planning. Methods: A random-digit-dial telephone survey of 1503 households with 2700 children was conducted in Georgia. Primary caretakers were interviewed. Results for households, children, and caretakers were weighted by number of telephone lines; results for children were also weighted to the Georgia 1998 estimated population. Data were collected and analyzed in 2000. Results: Asthma prevalence among children in Georgia aged 0 to 17 years was 10.5% (95% confidence interval [CI] =9.2%-11.9%). Among children with asthma, 64.8% (95% CI=58.5-71.1) had an attack and 30.0% (95% CI=24.2-35.8) visited an emergency department in the last year. In the past year, 53.9% (95% CI=46.8-61.0) of school-aged children with asthma and 29.7% (95% CI=23.7-35.7) of adults in households of children with asthma missed school or work because of the child's asthma. Among children with asthma, 56.1% (95% CI=48.6-63.6) lived in a household where neither caretaker nor child has taken a course or been taught about managing asthma, and 28.6% (95% CI = 22.1-35.1) lived in a household where adults smoked inside the house. Conclusions: Asthma has a substantial effect on the lives of children in Georgia, including medical events and missed school, and on adult caretakers in terms of missed work due to the child's asthma. To reduce the burden of asthma in Georgia, exposure of people with asthma to tobacco smoke in the home should be eliminated and training in asthma management should be more widely available.