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Prevalence of asthma-like symptoms in young children

Hans Bisgaard1, Stanley Szefler

  • 1Danish Pediatric Asthma Center, Copenhagen University Hospital, Gentofte, Copenhagen, Denmark. bisgaard@copsac.dk

Pediatric Pulmonology
|June 29, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Asthma-like symptoms like cough and wheeze affect many preschool children in the US and Europe. Current treatments are often ineffective, indicating a significant unmet clinical need for better diagnosis and management strategies.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Respiratory Medicine
  • Epidemiology of Childhood Illnesses

Background:

  • Asthma-like symptoms are common in preschool children.
  • The prevalence, impact, and treatment of these symptoms vary globally.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the prevalence, impact, and treatment of asthma-like symptoms in preschool children across the USA and Europe.

Main Methods:

  • Telephone interviews were conducted with 7251 households in the USA and Europe with children aged 1-5 years.
  • Data collected on recurrent cough, wheeze, or breathlessness during winter months.

Main Results:

  • 32% of 9490 identified children experienced recurrent troublesome symptoms.
  • 24% of symptomatic children had weekly symptoms despite treatment, impacting lifestyle and healthcare use.
  • Regional differences in symptom burden, treatment, and diagnosis were observed, with higher burden in Southern Europe.

Conclusions:

  • Recurrent respiratory symptoms in preschoolers are a significant cause of morbidity.
  • There is a lack of international consensus on the diagnosis and treatment of these symptoms.
  • This highlights a substantial unmet clinical need in preschool pediatric care.
Abstract

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