Health-care resource use by asthmatics in Croatia

We report a survey of the impact of asthma on daily life and on health-care resource use by adult asthma patients in four counties in Croatia. Over a 1-year period beginning November 1998, 185 general practitioners recruited 504 asthma patients, who completed a questionnaire about their drug therapy, health-care resource use, symptoms, limitations in daily activities, and work loss due to asthma. Over a 2-week period, inhaled corticosteroids were used by 51.5% of patients, short-acting and long-acting beta-agonists by 70.8% and 53.5%, respectively, and oral extended-release theophyllines by 29.8%. Nocturnal awakenings were experienced by 58.7% of patients, 75.5% experienced daytime symptoms, and 42.5% were limited in their daily activities. In the previous year, 12.5% of the patients were hospitalized, 33% missed work, and 70% reported reduced effectiveness in the workplace. In the previous 6 months, 35.2% of the patients visited an emergency room due to worsening of asthma symptoms. The human and socioeconomic burden of asthma in Croatia is considerable. These results can help guide the development of asthma policy in Croatia and raise awareness of asthma as a public health issue.