[Epidemiology of asthma in children and young adults in Algiers]

A sampling survey was carried out in Algiers among households to assess the frequency of chronic asthma in children and young people and to investigate the handicap resulting from this disease. 4,677 subjects younger than 25 years of age were registered, 47% of whom were children under 15. A report by households of a doctor's diagnosis of asthma was used to identify subjects with this disease from a direct face-to-face interviewing. The overall annual prevalence was 34.2 per thousand and the annual incidence was estimated as 3.1 per thousand. Except for children under 5 years of age which prevalence was 16 per thousand, the prevalence ranged from 34 to 41 per thousand for the other age groups. There was no significant difference between children and young adults for prevalence or incidence rates of asthma. The prevalence was two times greater in boys than in girls. On the other hand, the prevalence of asthma was 2.5 times greater in upper social class persons than in lower class persons. The proportion of severe handicaps was very low. But moderate handicaps resulting from asthma especially in the field of occupation were substantially frequent, 21% of asthmatics had a curtailed or adjusted occupation.