Publication:

Effect of parental knowledge and attitude in the control of childhood asthma

Background Asthma is responsible for 250,000 deaths and 1% of all the DALY (disability-adjusted life year) worldwide. It is a leading cause of school absenteeism among children and incurs a large financial burden. Parents of children with asthma have varied beliefs and knowledge about asthma and its treatment which may affect the control of asthma.

Methods A cross-sectional study was carried out among parents of children who attended the asthma clinic of a tertiary care centre in central Kerala, India using a questionnaire.

Results A total of 303 parents were enrolled in the study. The mean age of the asthmatic children was 5.36±1.8 years with a male to female ratio of 1.16:1. In the study group 48.18% (146/303) of the parents correctly answered >60% (at least 7 correct answers out of 11) of the knowledge questions (mean = 6.57±2.06) while only 17.16% (52/303) of the parents correctly answered >60% (at least 4 correct answers out of 7) of the attitude questions (mean = 3.20±1.33). A statistically significant association (P = 0.0035) was found between knowledge levels ( 60% of the knowledge questions correctly answered) and control of asthma. And a similar association (P = 0.0135) was also seen between attitude levels ( 60% of the attitude questions correctly answered) and control of asthma.

Conclusions Even though parents had better knowledge of asthma than attitude, the control of asthma was related to the level of both knowledge and attitude of parents.   Keywords: