Asthma-related knowledge, attitudes, practices (KAP) of parents of children with bronchial asthma: A hospital-based study

Background: Prevention of asthma exacerbations is one of the major challenges of public health. Parents are crucial for exacerbation prevention and management at home. This study was conducted with the objective of assessing asthma knowledge in the parents of asthmatic children and to understand parents' attitude and practices in dealing with the exacerbation of their children's asthma. Materials and Methods: A convenient sample of 100 parents of asthmatic children was enrolled. Any parents (mother or/and father) with a child aged 8 years and above, diagnosed with bronchial asthma, and attending the Outpatient Department of Paediatrics, Saveetha Medical College and Hospital with his/her child in the study period could be included. Results: In this study, 62 A children were male and 38% female, the average age was 12.53 years [standard deviation (SD) 2.95], and the average time duration for living with an asthmatic condition was 6 years (SD 3). Of the parents, 80% responded that they did not know what inhaled corticosteroids were and most (86%) of them did not know how they worked, while 41% were aware of aerosol therapy. Of the respondents, 87% had never used a Children's Asthma Control Test questionnaire and 78% said that they did not have any written action plan in case of their child suffering an asthma attack Conclusion: There is an urgent need for the preparation of parental guidelines for preventing asthma exacerbations among asthmatic children living in India.