PARENTAL ASTHMA KNOWLEDGE
Fadzil A1, Nurzila MZ2
1. International University Of Malaysia, Kuantan, Malaysia
2. Institute Of Pediatric, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Asthma knowledge is one of the important components in
asthma education. With proper asthma knowledge, patients and their
caregiver can participated in asthma management more effectively.
Objective: to determine the asthma knowledge level
in parents of asthmatic children and factors that can influenced it.
Methods: This is a prospective study done in between Mac
1998 till July 1998. Sixty-seven parents were interviewed using the 31
items asthma knowledge questionnaire that has been translated and
validated. The children asthma status was then determined. Other factors
that were asked were the children and parents biodata, type of medications
and their dosage, duration of asthma, exposed to cigarette, admissions, and
parents’ economic status.
Results: The mean of asthma knowledge score is 15.5 out
of total score of 31. Asthma knowledge are significantly higher in
parents whose children are using steroid [CI (-3.58, -0.02)], it also has
significant positive correlation with steroid dosage (r = 0.29, p = 0.02),
and significantly higher in parents of higher economic status. Parents
asthma knowledge have no association with children asthma status, age
of the child or parents, exposed to cigarette, frequency of admission,
duration of the children asthma, and if mothers are working or not.
Conclusion: The low asthma knowledge
level indicates the need to increase the effort in educating
parents. In this group of low asthma knowledge parent, it seems that the
main indicator for higher knowledge were steroid usage and it dosage.
Higher asthma knowledge in high-income group is probably related higher
level of education.