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A survey found that 80% of children with asthma do not regularly use inhaled medications, and even doctors have a high rate of 30% not prescribing according to treatment guidelines. Misconceptions about medication among both doctors and patients, along with environmental changes, have led to a tenfold increase in the prevalence of asthma in Taiwan over the past 30 years.
Chang Gung Children's Hospital conducted a questionnaire survey of nearly 300 elementary school children with asthma and their parents, revealing that their knowledge about asthma was inadequate, with an average score of only 40 points. Sixty percent of the children mistakenly believed that asthma is a terrifying infectious disease or thought that they did not need to seek medical attention or take medication if they were not experiencing symptoms.
Dr. Ou Liang-hsiu from the Pediatric Allergy, Asthma, and Rheumatology Department at Chang Gung Children's Hospital stated that inhaled corticosteroids are the first-line treatment in asthma guidelines. However, many parents are afraid of corticosteroids, fearing that their children will not grow tall after using them, leading to a low proportion of children with asthma using inhaled medications in Taiwan.
The lack of knowledge about asthma among children and their parents is mirrored by the incorrect treatment concepts among doctors. A survey of 531 doctors found that over 30% did not prescribe medications according to the asthma treatment guidelines issued by the Department of Health, and only 16.7% of doctors prescribed inhaled corticosteroids as the first-line treatment.
Dr. Huang Jing-long, Director of the Internal Medicine Department at Chang Gung Hospital, noted that the survey revealed that even doctors are influenced by the distrust of patients or their families, leading them not to prescribe corticosteroids. Even when inhaled corticosteroids are prescribed, only 17.4% of children with asthma use them regularly.
Doctors stated that the failure of children with asthma to use medications properly is clearly reflected in the hospitalization rates for asthma. Health insurance statistics show that the hospitalization rate for children aged two to six with asthma has increased by 50% over the past six years.
Dr. Ou Liang-hsiu mentioned that how to make children with asthma and their parents not resist inhaled corticosteroids has always been a challenging issue in asthma treatment. Many parents are often unaware that a single dose of oral corticosteroids during an acute asthma attack is actually several hundred times the amount of inhaled corticosteroids, enough for children to use inhaled corticosteroids for many years.
Dr. Ou Liang-hsiu explained that inhaled corticosteroids act directly on the lungs and do not cause systemic side effects. If children with asthma can use inhaled corticosteroids correctly and in appropriate amounts, it will significantly reduce the likelihood of acute asthma attacks.
Source: http://tw. news. yahoo. com/ 060607/ 19/ 37rpl. html
This article blurs the focus and requires clarification in some areas.
First, "failure to adhere to medication" at most prevents the recovery of those already ill, but does not increase the number of new patients, nor does it cause the prevalence of asthma to increase tenfold. "Environmental changes and other factors" are the main culprits behind the increase in asthma prevalence, see this.
Second, the correlation between "failure to adhere to medication" and "asthma hospitalization rates" has not been statistically confirmed by epidemiological studies; it is purely speculative on the part of the physician. Moreover, the prevalence of asthma has increased at least tenfold over the past two to three decades. How can we be certain that the increase in hospitalization rates for asthmatic children is due to the rise in asthma prevalence rather than "failure to adhere to medication"?
Third, why would patients or their families distrust physicians' prescriptions of steroids? The root cause lies with the physicians who initially abused steroids, leading patients to discover the terrifying side effects of steroids. It is the physicians who have caused patients to lose trust, not the patients who distrust the physicians.
80% of Asthmatic Children Not on Regular Medication
Chang Gung Children's Hospital conducted a questionnaire survey of nearly 300 elementary school children with asthma and their parents, revealing that their knowledge about asthma was inadequate, with an average score of only 40 points. Sixty percent of the children mistakenly believed that asthma is a terrifying infectious disease or thought that they did not need to seek medical attention or take medication if they were not experiencing symptoms.
Dr. Ou Liang-hsiu from the Pediatric Allergy, Asthma, and Rheumatology Department at Chang Gung Children's Hospital stated that inhaled corticosteroids are the first-line treatment in asthma guidelines. However, many parents are afraid of corticosteroids, fearing that their children will not grow tall after using them, leading to a low proportion of children with asthma using inhaled medications in Taiwan.
The lack of knowledge about asthma among children and their parents is mirrored by the incorrect treatment concepts among doctors. A survey of 531 doctors found that over 30% did not prescribe medications according to the asthma treatment guidelines issued by the Department of Health, and only 16.7% of doctors prescribed inhaled corticosteroids as the first-line treatment.
Dr. Huang Jing-long, Director of the Internal Medicine Department at Chang Gung Hospital, noted that the survey revealed that even doctors are influenced by the distrust of patients or their families, leading them not to prescribe corticosteroids. Even when inhaled corticosteroids are prescribed, only 17.4% of children with asthma use them regularly.
Doctors stated that the failure of children with asthma to use medications properly is clearly reflected in the hospitalization rates for asthma. Health insurance statistics show that the hospitalization rate for children aged two to six with asthma has increased by 50% over the past six years.
Dr. Ou Liang-hsiu mentioned that how to make children with asthma and their parents not resist inhaled corticosteroids has always been a challenging issue in asthma treatment. Many parents are often unaware that a single dose of oral corticosteroids during an acute asthma attack is actually several hundred times the amount of inhaled corticosteroids, enough for children to use inhaled corticosteroids for many years.
Dr. Ou Liang-hsiu explained that inhaled corticosteroids act directly on the lungs and do not cause systemic side effects. If children with asthma can use inhaled corticosteroids correctly and in appropriate amounts, it will significantly reduce the likelihood of acute asthma attacks.
Source: http://tw. news. yahoo. com/ 060607/ 19/ 37rpl. html
Re: 80% of Asthmatic Children Not Adhering to Medication
First, "failure to adhere to medication" at most prevents the recovery of those already ill, but does not increase the number of new patients, nor does it cause the prevalence of asthma to increase tenfold. "Environmental changes and other factors" are the main culprits behind the increase in asthma prevalence, see this.
Second, the correlation between "failure to adhere to medication" and "asthma hospitalization rates" has not been statistically confirmed by epidemiological studies; it is purely speculative on the part of the physician. Moreover, the prevalence of asthma has increased at least tenfold over the past two to three decades. How can we be certain that the increase in hospitalization rates for asthmatic children is due to the rise in asthma prevalence rather than "failure to adhere to medication"?
Third, why would patients or their families distrust physicians' prescriptions of steroids? The root cause lies with the physicians who initially abused steroids, leading patients to discover the terrifying side effects of steroids. It is the physicians who have caused patients to lose trust, not the patients who distrust the physicians.