Asthma awareness, control and frequency of symptoms in hospital applicants

Asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases in developed and developing countries. The incidence of asthma has been increasing over the years. The aim of this study is to determine asthma awareness, control and frequency of symptoms in hospital applicants. This cross-sectional study was conducted among people aged 18-64 who applied to the hospital between November 2020 and April 2021. The data of the study were collected through personal information form, Asthma Control test (AKT) and Asthma Screening Questionnaire (ATA). Those who scored ≥ 4 on the ATA were defined as having possible asthma. A total of 604 people, 206 of whom were asthmatic, participated in the study. Of the participants, 65.6% were female, and the mean age (45.7) and body mass index (BMI) (28.4) of the asthma group were higher than the control group (38.4 and 25.9, respectively). It was found that 78.6% of asthma patients did not have their asthma symptoms under control, and the risk increased as age and BMI increased and life satisfaction decreased. It was observed that 11.3% of the control group had asthma symptoms, the risk increased with increasing age. BMI, gender, presence of asthma in the family, smoking status and presence of allergy were not found statistically significant. It has been seen that the majority of asthma patients are not under control, age and high BMI are important risk factors. It was observed that there were patients in the control group who lived without a diagnosis despite having asthma symptoms, and this situation was associated with increasing age. Keywords: Asthma, asthma awareness, control, symptoms