Roy Angkana, Wisnivesky Juan P
Department of Pediatrics, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York 10029, USA.
J Asthma. 2010 Jun;47(5):507-12. doi: 10.3109/02770901003734314.
Minority children with asthma suffer a disproportionate burden of asthma morbidity. National asthma guidelines recommend use of environmental control practices (ECPs) as part of a comprehensive approach to asthma management. The purpose of this study was to examine use of ECPs among minority and nonminority children with asthma.
The authors used data from the four state sample of the National Asthma Survey, a telephone survey conducted in 2003. The sample included Alabama, California, Illinois, and Texas. Parents provided responses for 2003 children < or =17 years of age with a diagnosis of asthma. The outcomes of interest were use of mattress covers, use of pillow covers, smoke avoidance, pet avoidance, and carpet removal. Univariate and multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the rates of use of these ECPs among minority and nonminority children.
Black and Hispanic children with asthma were less likely to use mattress covers and pillow covers compared to white children in these four states. Smoking avoidance was less likely among black children but more likely among Hispanic children compared to white children. Both black and Hispanic children were more likely to live in a home without pets and without carpets compared to white children.
These data illustrate that there are differences in the patterns of ECP use among minority and nonminority children with asthma in these four states. This information can help target physician counseling regarding ECP use in asthmatic children and should inform interventions to improve asthma management among minority children.
患有哮喘的少数族裔儿童承受着不成比例的哮喘发病负担。国家哮喘指南建议将环境控制措施（ECPs）作为哮喘综合管理方法的一部分。本研究的目的是调查患有哮喘的少数族裔和非少数族裔儿童对环境控制措施的使用情况。
作者使用了2003年进行的全国哮喘调查中四个州样本的数据。样本包括阿拉巴马州、加利福尼亚州、伊利诺伊州和得克萨斯州。父母为2003名年龄小于或等于17岁且被诊断患有哮喘的儿童提供了答复。感兴趣的结果是床垫套的使用、枕套的使用、避免吸烟、避免养宠物和移除地毯。进行了单变量和多元回归分析，以研究这些环境控制措施在少数族裔和非少数族裔儿童中的使用率。
在这四个州，患有哮喘的黑人儿童和西班牙裔儿童使用床垫套和枕套的可能性低于白人儿童。与白人儿童相比，黑人儿童避免吸烟的可能性较小，但西班牙裔儿童更有可能避免吸烟。与白人儿童相比，黑人和西班牙裔儿童更有可能生活在没有宠物和没有地毯的家庭中。
这些数据表明，在这四个州，患有哮喘的少数族裔和非少数族裔儿童在环境控制措施的使用模式上存在差异。这些信息有助于针对哮喘儿童使用环境控制措施进行医生咨询，并应为改善少数族裔儿童哮喘管理的干预措施提供依据。
