A comparison of admission patterns of childhood asthma in 1982 and 1992

The patterns of childhood asthma admission to the Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University in 1982 and 1992 were studied and compared. The number of childhood asthma admissions were 128 cases in 1982 an 132 cases in 1992. Male to female ratio changed from 1.3:1 in 1982 to 1.9:1 in 1992. The average age on admission was 57 months in 1982 vs 62 months in 1992 which was not significantly different (p > 0.05). The admission pattern of cases under 1 year of age went down from 16% in 1982 to 6% in 1992. At emergency room, adrenaline injection was used for all asthma cases in 1982 but decreased to 30% of the patients in 1992 with the replacement of nebulized beta 2 agonist. The percentage of cases that were treated with aminophylline, corticosteroid and oxygen therapy were comparable between both periods. The most common form of steroid used in admissions changed from hydrocortisone in 1982 to methyl prednisolone in 1992. The use of antibiotics went down from 92% in 1982 to 80% in 1992. All of the admission cases in both periods recovered and were later discharged. The average period of admission was 3.9 days in 1982 and was not significant different (p > 0.05) from 4.9 days in 1992.