Asthma, a chronic respiratory disease affecting millions of people worldwide, can vary in severity depending on individual triggers such as Carbon Dioxide, Particulate Matter, dust mites, tobacco smoke, and indoor household activities such as cooking, cleaning, use of heating, and window opening, which can have a negative impact on indoor air quality (IAQ) and exacerbate asthma symptoms. Investigating the relationship between IAQ and asthma severity, a case study was conducted on five asthmatic participants from Bradford, UK. IAQ was measured using IoT indoor air quality monitoring devices. Indoor activities were recorded using a daily household activities questionnaire, and asthma severity was assessed using the Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ). Machine learning prediction models were used to analyse various IAQ parameters, such as particulate matter, carbon dioxide, and humidity levels, to identify the most significant predictors of asthma severity with IAQ. The study aimed to develop targeted interventions to improve IAQ and reduce the burden of asthma. Results showed that higher asthma severity scores were associated with increased indoor activity and higher levels of indoor air pollution. Some interventions were implemented to improve ventilation hours, significantly improving IAQ and reducing asthma symptoms, particularly those with more severe asthma. The findings indicate that interventions targeting IAQ, and indoor activities can effectively reduce asthma severity, with up to a 60% reduction in symptoms for asthma patients.

Asthma is a complex, chronic disorder of the airways that is characterized by underlying inflammation, airflow obstruction, and bronchial hyperresponsiveness. Asthma symptoms can be frightening and can have an effect on the emotional functioning Quality of Life (QOL) of school-aged children who have asthma. The purpose of this exploratory, descriptive, cross-sectional, correlational study was to explore the influence of factors identified in the literature on school-aged children’s emotional responses to asthma. Guiding this study was a theoretical model that proposed that the impact of chronic illness severity on QOL is potentially mediated by both resource and barrier factors. The population of interest was 85 school-aged children (ages 6-12) and parents of children who have asthma that were recruited from participants already enrolled in year 4 of the Asthma in Central Texas (ACT) study (R01NR007770, Sharon D. Horner, P.I.) at The University of Texas at Austin. Significant inverse correlations were found between asthma related child emotional functioning QOL and each of the following variables: asthma severity, r = -.30, p < .01; child internalizing behaviors, r = -.26, p < .05, and child externalizing behaviors, r = -.43, p < .001. Significant inverse relationships were found between caregiver emotional functioning QOL and each of the following variables: asthma severity, r = -.39, p < .001; child internalizing behaviors, r = -.22, p < .05 and child externalizing behaviors, r = -.25, p < .05. Multiple regression analysis revealed that asthma severity and child externalizing problems accounted for 26% of the variance in child emotional functioning QOL. No moderators or mediators were identified. Findings from this study imply that externalizing problem behaviors of school-aged children may be a predictor of their negative feelings about their asthma. Nursing educators should consider including the emotional impact of asthma on children in nursing curriculums as this may ultimately influence health care providers to more skillfully address this important issue in both assessment and intervention settings. / text

Asthma affects over 2.2 million people in Australia. Asthma morbidity is increasing while mortality is decreasing. People with asthma experience shortness of breath as their airways narrow and become inflamed. After an episode of acute asthma many patients experience a relapse requiring further emergency department care. Numerous studies have been undertaken to identify the determinants of asthma morbidity and these studies have primarily used asthma oriented and co-morbidity scales such as anxiety and depression indices. Other studies in this area have indicated psychosocial factors such as coping, asthma attitudes and beliefs that may be linked to people with asthma who are non-compliant or adherent to treatment. Currently, there is no research available that has examined the link between general health promoting behaviours, an individual’s risk behaviour assessment and a brief asthma education encounter that is patient-centred. This study provides a description of the health promoting and risk taking behaviours of people who attend the emergency department with acute asthma. Secondly, it examines the effectiveness of patient-centred education compared with standard education. One hundred and forty-six people with acute asthma who attended the emergency departments of the Princess Alexandra and Mater Adult Public Hospitals were enrolled in this study. Participants self-reported health promoting and risk taking behaviours by completing the questionnaire that contained the Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLPII) and the Health Risk Appraisal (HRA) instruments. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was also incorporated into the questionnaire to ascertain levels of anxiety and depression in this acute asthma group of people. The asthma education curriculum had the same topics for both the standard education and the patient-centred groups. However, the patient-centred group were able to prioritise the order of the topics according to their identified need. Secondly, the patient-centred group were asked two questions to ascertain the most important issue and asthma issue for them at that point in time. Both groups of participants were educated using the Asthma Foundation Leaflet “Asthma - Basic Facts” during the individual education session. There were 56% females and 44% males with a mean age (+SD) of 34 (13.8) years with 70.3% reported year 12 or above education and 49% of participants earned less that $20,000. Nearly half of the participants were admitted to a hospital ward following emergency department assessment and care. A large proportion of the participants had either moderate or severe asthma. The health behaviour findings from this study suggest people with acute asthma follow preventive health recommendations and safety guidelines more so than the wider community. However, they did not self-initiate home based health actions such as breast self-examination. At the time of attendance to the emergency department with acute asthma there were no statistical difference between the patient-centred education and standard format education groups for age, gender, education, income, asthma control and previous emergency department attendances. The patient-centred education group had fewer re-attendances in the four months after the education intervention when compared with prior emergency department attendances than the control group (p=0.057; p=0.486). In conclusion, people with acute asthma report undertaking a number of preventive health behaviours and actions according to national guidelines and safety recommendations. They report a lack of self-initiated home based health behaviours. Further research is required to investigate the impact on the National Asthma Council’s recommendations of the importance of asthma action plans on people who follow preventive health guidelines and who lack self-initiative abilities. In terms of asthma education, patient-centred education when compared to standard format education may be useful in reducing further emergency department attendances for acute asthma. More research is required to identify other key education issues for people with acute asthma.

Aims. The overall aim was to examine the severity, treatment and level of control in patients with asthma in primary care in Sweden. The specific aims were to assess what matters to asthma patients, evaluate symptoms, medication and identify factors related to asthma severity, compare the extent of asthma control in 2001 and 2005, and investigate the development of asthma and degree of asthma control in adolescents and young adults who had reported asthma six years earlier. Methods. The first study was a telephone interview of a representative sample of Swedish asthmatics. In the second study a random sample of 1,136 patients answered two questionnaires. A classification of the asthma severity similar to that in the GINA guidelines was made. In the third study two surveys were performed, in 2001 and in 2005, with a random sample of 1,012 and 224 asthma patients, respectively, and a classification of asthma control similar to the recent GINA guidelines was made. In the fourth study 71 individuals who reported physician-diagnosed asthma in a population-based survey in 1997 and were defined as current asthmatics, were reinvestigated in 2003 with a skin prick test, methacholine challenge test, eucapnic voluntary hyperventilation test and measurement of exhaled nitric oxide. Results. Common situations causing symptoms of asthma were physical exertion and contact with pets. Nocturnal symptoms were frequent. In primary care 35% of the women and 24% of the men were classified as having severe asthma. Female sex, increasing age, not filling the asthma prescription owing to cost, daily smoking, and pollen allergy increased the odds of having severe asthma. In 2001, 37% had achieved asthma control, as compared with 40% in 2005. Uncontrolled asthma was more common in women and smokers. In the 2003 study of adolescents and young adults with asthma six years earlier, the definition of current asthma was fulfilled by 50 of the 71 subjects and one third had achieved asthma control. Conclusions. The majority of the asthmatics reported a large number of symptoms and limitations in their daily living. Many asthma patients in primary care have insufficient asthma control. One reason for lack of control might be undertreatment with inhaled corticosteroids.