Publication: A study into the knowledge of childhood asthma among parents and its relation to emergency department visit
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Date
2020
Authors
Mohamad, Wan Syahmi Wan
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Abstract
Introduction Asthma continues to be a major cause of frequent pediatric visits at the Emergency Department (ED). Children with asthma rely on parents to control the pulmonary disease. The level of knowledge of these parents has been found to influence asthma control. Aim This study aims to evaluate parental knowledge and its relation to emergency department visits and explore factors associated with knowledge level. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted involving all patients visiting the Emergency Department of a tertiary center in Kelantan, Malaysia, for six months in 2020. There were 231 respondents involved. A 25-item Asthma Knowledge Questionnaire (AKQ) was used to evaluate the parental level of knowledge about childhood asthma, and knowledge levels were categorized into good and poor knowledge. To analyze the associations, a descriptive test and Fisher's Exact test were used.Results In this study, 131 women (57.5%) and 97 men (42.5%) participated. Most of their children were over five years of age (70.2%). More than half of the respondents (51.5%) in the middle class or M40 household income group (51.8%) with higher education. Parents with good childhood asthma knowledge (n, % = 224, 97.0%) were significantly higher compared to those with poor knowledge. Child age was the only sociodemographic factor with a significant p-value (p = 0.03) among the seven factors tested (gender, child age, the time period after diagnosis, education level, household income group, family history of atopy disease, and history of admission due to asthma). However, there is no significant association between the frequency of visits to the emergency department within six months and parental knowledge of children's asthma (p = 0.62). Conclusion Parental knowledge of childhood asthma is an essential factor in the assessment and monitoring of childhood asthma. This research has a significant association of good knowledge with parents having younger children. Although the parent has relatively good knowledge of childhood asthma, the issues relating to diagnosis and pathogenesis of the condition and treatment are very worrying. To strengthen asthma education for parents and children, good coordination between healthcare professionals and a culturally adapted intervention is needed.
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Keywords
Childhood asthma , Asthma