PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Al-Zalabani, Abdulmohsen H.
AU  - Almotairy, Mohamad M.
TI  - Asthma control and its association with knowledge of caregivers among children with asthma
AID  - 10.15537/smj.2020.7.25167
DP  - 2020 Jul 01
TA  - Saudi Medical Journal
PG  - 733--739
VI  - 41
IP  - 7
4099  - http://smj.org.sa/content/41/7/733.short
4100  - http://smj.org.sa/content/41/7/733.full
SO  - Saudi Med J2020 Jul 01; 41
AB  - Objectives: To investigate the level of asthma control among children and to investigate the association between asthma control and the knowledge of caregivers.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from January 2018 to July 2018 among 278 children with asthma aged 1-12 with their caregivers attending the primary health care centers in Al Madinah Al Munawarah, Saudi Arabia. An asthma knowledge questionnaire was used to measure the parents’ knowledge. The Test for Respiratory and Asthma Control in Kids (TRACK) and the Childhood Asthma Control Test (C-ACT) were used to evaluate asthma control among the children. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to compare the knowledge level between the controlled and uncontrolled asthma groups.Results: Approximately 62.6% of children had uncontrolled asthma and 37.4% were controlled. The knowledge scores of the caregivers ranged from 43 to 64, with a mean score of 52.55. The mean knowledge score was higher in the controlled group (55.57) than in the uncontrolled group (50.76). There was a statistically significant difference in the knowledge scores between the participant groups (t=9.892, p<0.001).Conclusion: There is a high percentage of children with uncontrolled asthma and 3 is a high knowledge deficit among the caregivers of children with asthma. An educational program targeting the general population and the caregivers should be implemented to correct any false beliefs regarding asthma and asthma medications.