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(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- According to national asthma guidelines, children with persistent asthma who receive the right care and treatment should rarely, if ever, suffer health setbacks caused by the condition.
According to a new survey conducted among the parents of 975 asthmatic children, 80 percent of kids with persistent asthma are suffering ill effects all the time.
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What's the problem? The University of Rochester researchers report too many kids are going without needed controller medications, which can keep symptoms at bay if taken every day. Results from their new study reveal even children who have received these prescriptions are still having problems with their asthma.
Further analysis pointed to several factors that may be responsible, including the fact many children with prescriptions aren't using them as prescribed, many are still being exposed to asthma triggers, like secondhand smoke and pet dander, and many have not received enough education to help them know when an attack might be on the way or what to do about an attack when it's happening.
Study authors write parents, children and doctors must all take responsibility for the problem. "Asthma care involves coordination on everyone's part. Parents and patients need to report and track symptoms, relay this information to their doctor, use medications as prescribed, and steer clear of triggers. Physicians need to recognize persistent symptoms in their patients, and take time to prescribe, educate and draw up [a] unique action plan for each patient's management," they write.
The authors call for a multidimensional approach that would include "promotion of specific screening methods to assess severity and control at office visits, provider education to enhance preventive medication prescription, and community-based work to optimize medication adherence and environmental control."
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
SOURCE: Ambulatory Pediatrics, published online March 15, 2007
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