Abstract
To assess the prevalence rate and risk factors for hospital admissions among asthma children and to evaluate care delivered to these patients. Three-hundred and twenty-five asthmatic children attending a public outpatient reference clinic were studied. Of them, 202 were hospitalized. Care was evaluated using a questionnaire covering general aspects of hospital stay and biological, demographics, socioeconomic and asthma-related factors. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to measure the association between hospital admissions and selected independent variables. Of the total, 62.2% had already been hospitalized due to asthma, 64.9% developed asthma episodes, and 60.9% were hospitalized in their first year of life. Most (76.0%) had moderate to severe asthma. Despite that, 94.2% were not on anti-inflammatory drugs and were treated only during isolated acute episodes. None of these were regularly seen in primary health care centers for a periodic control of their steroid inhalants. Most parents (97.8%) referred not to know how to take care of asthma children. Symptoms onset is normally seen before the age of 12 months (OR=3.20; 95%CI 1.55-6,61) or between 12 and 24 months (OR=3.89; 95%CI 1.62-9.36). Mothers have attended school for less than 7 years (OR=3.06; 95%CI 1.62-5.76). Disease severity (OR=2.32; 95%CI 1.24-3.88), 2 or more monthly visits to emergency wards (OR=2.19; 95%CI 1.24-3.88), and referred recurrent pneumonia (OR=2.00; 95%IC 1.06-3.80) were the main risk factors for hospital admissions. Organizing health care services is crucial to reduce hospital admissions and provide adequate care for asthma children and adolescents, especially those less than 2 years old.
Highlights
evaluate care delivered to these patients
Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to measure the association between hospital admissions
60.9% were hospitalized in their first year of life
Summary
Organizing health care services is crucial to reduce hospital admissions and provide adequate care for asthma children and adolescents, especially those less than 2 years old. Em Belo Horizonte, a asma foi, em 1994, a segunda causa de admissão hospitalar entre crianças de 1 a 9 anos no SUS. O presente estudo teve como objetivo estudar a ocorrência e os fatores de risco associados à hospitalização em um grupo de crianças asmáticas e realizar um diagnóstico do tipo de assistência ofertada pelo Sistema Único de Saúde a esses pacientes, visando à implementação de um projeto para a criança asmática no município de Belo Horizonte a partir de 1996. O estudo foi realizado entre outubro de 1994 e dezembro de 1995 em um ambulatório de pneumologia pediátrica de Belo Horizonte, MG, que atende exclusivamente pacientes do Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS). Seu objetivo era realizar um diagnóstico da assistência prestada aos pacientes asmáticos para a implementação, em 1996, de um projeto de atenção à criança asmática na rede municipal de atenção básica de Belo Horizonte. Esse foi o total de pacientes asmáticos registrados no ambulatório no período compreendido entre outubro de 1994 e dezembro de 1995
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