Adherence to Asthma Controller Therapy Among Children in Majmaah City, Saudi Arabia

Background and objective Improving adherence to asthma medications may prevent asthma exacerbation, which is associated with a decline in lung function. The purpose of this study was to assess the adherence to asthma controller therapy and the factors that might influence the level of adherence among asthmatic children. Materials and methods We conducted a prospective observational study at the King Khalid Hospital in Majmaah, Saudi Arabia between January and April 2020; the study was conducted among children aged 1-14 years with a diagnosis of asthma. The data collected when available included age and gender by using a pre-tested questionnaire that contained four validated items, and the respondents were the parents of the affected children. Due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the data collection was performed via phone calls to ensure safety. Informed consent was obtained from the parents. Results We analyzed 152 asthmatic children to evaluate their adherence to asthma controller therapy. The majority of the children were males (60%). Asthma was most prevalent in the age group of 6-10 years (40.1%), followed by the age group of two to five years (32.9%). We found that the majority of the patients had poor adherence to asthma medication (83.6%) while the remaining had good adherence (16.4%). The total mean score for adherence to medication therapy was 5.16 (SD: 2.3). Conclusions The present study showed that the overall adherence level to the asthma controller therapy was poor among children. Larger, nationwide studies are needed to assess the adherence to asthma medications and implement interventions that can improve the same.