Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 14, 2026
Conducting Respiratory Oscillometry in an Outpatient Setting
Published on: April 8, 2022
A medication assessment tool to evaluate adherence to medication guideline in asthmatic children
Hui-Ping Liu1, Hsiang-Yin Chen, Julienne Johnson
1Department of Pharmacy, Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Insights
A new tool, MAT ASTHMA-PAED, was developed to assess asthma medication use in children aged 5-12 years. The tool showed 70% adherence to guidelines, highlighting areas for improved asthma management in pediatric care.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Pulmonology
- Clinical Pharmacy
- Evidence-Based Medicine
Background:
- Childhood asthma is a significant cause of illness and death.
- Current asthma guidelines require effective medication use assessment.
- A validated tool is needed to evaluate adherence to pediatric asthma management recommendations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design a valid medication assessment tool for pediatric asthma care.
- To evaluate the quality of medication use based on updated asthma guidelines.
- To quantify adherence to guideline recommendations in children aged 5-12 years.
Main Methods:
- Identified recommendations from British Thoracic Society/Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network and Global Initiative for Asthma.
- Developed the MAT ASTHMA-PAED tool with 25 criteria.
- Conducted two phases of field-testing in primary care settings and expert focus groups.
Main Results:
- Field-testing involved 77 children in two Scottish primary care practices.
- Overall adherence to guidelines was 70.0% (95% CI: 58.7-81.3%).
- Identified 4 criteria with low adherence (<50%) and 8 with high adherence (>70%).
Conclusions:
- The MAT ASTHMA-PAED tool demonstrated high utility in assessing pediatric asthma medication management.
- Gaps in guideline implementation were noted, particularly regarding inhaler technique.
- Further research is recommended on oral steroid use, exercise-induced asthma, and broader tool implementation.
Objective:
Asthma is one of the commonest causes of morbidity and mortality in childhood. The goals of the present study were to design a valid medication assessment tool for evaluating the quality of medication use according to recommendations of updated asthma guidelines for children aged from 5 to 12 years, and to quantify adherence to guideline recommendations.
Setting:
Two primary care settings in Scotland, UK.
Methods:
Recommendations related to the long-term management of asthmatic children in the British Thoracic Society/Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network and Global Initiative for Asthma guidelines were identified and corresponding criteria were created. These criteria were incorporated to generate an assessment tool named MAT ASTHMA-PAED. Two phases of field-testing were undertaken and the tool was also subject to examination by a focus group of specialist practitioners. Thereafter, MAT ASTHMA-PAED was modified accordingly.
Main Outcome Measure:
Applicability and adherence to each criterion and overall adherence to the MAT ASTHMA-PAED.
Results:
The MAT ASTHMA-PAED field-testing was undertaken in two primary care practices in Scotland, United Kingdom and 77 asthmatic children were recruited. Results of the pilot study field-testing showed a high overall adherence of 70.0 % (95 % CI: 58.7-81.3 %) to the guidelines. Low adherence (<50 %) was seen for 4 criteria, whereas 8 criteria were considered high-adherence criteria (>70 %). The final MAT ASTHMA-PAED comprised of 25 criteria was produced based on the results of field testing and the opinions from the focus group.
Conclusion:
Although high utility of MAT ASTHMA-PAED criteria was found, there were gaps in the implementation of certain recommendations, particularly in relation to demonstrated satisfactory technique of inhaler. Moreover, further studies assessing the use of oral steroids and exercise-induced asthma, and wider implementation of MAT ASTHMA-PAED are required.
Related Concept Videos
01:30Asthma-IV: Diagnostic and Management
Clinical Assessment for Asthma:
This is the first step in diagnosing and managing asthma. It includes:
01:30Asthma-IV: Nursing Management
First, in...
01:23Inhaled Medications
01:13Asthma III: Clinical Manifestations
01:29Asthma-I: Introduction
01:25Antiasthma Drugs: β2-Adrenoceptor Agonists
One class of bronchodilators includes β2-adrenoceptor agonists. These agents target the β2-adrenoceptors located on bronchial smooth muscle cells. By stimulating these receptors, β2-agonists induce relaxation in these...