Evaluation of Some Growth Parameters among Patients with Chronic Asthma Attending Salahaldeen General Hospital

Abstract

Bckgrownd  :Asthma can  impair  airway  development  and  reduce maximally attained lung function, and these deficits in lung function can persist or extend into adulthood without further progressive loss. Asthmatic patients are more vulnerable to infections and noncommunicable chronic co-morbidities, which are linked to poorer asthma outcomes.
Aim:    The current study aimed to assess the impact of asthma and its treatment on children's growth parameters. 
Pateint and Method:     A convenient sample of 200 children in primary school aged (6-12 years) was enrolled including a case group consisting of 100 patients who were presented with asthma; This group was subdivided into two subgroups (50 children using steroids as a treatment and 50 children with asthma using non-steroidal therapy) and 100 healthy children in the control group. Results:  The results of the current study showed that male constitutes the largest percentage of the sample (56%). There was a difference between the study groups regarding age, gender, and residency. The parent's asthma, exposure to smoking, lower respiratory tract infection, and allergy were confirmed  as  risk  factors  for  asthma  in  children.  The  means  of anthropometric parameters, except height, were higher among asthmatic patients with regular steroids than those with intermittent steroid use and healthy child in the control group. The height mean was lower in asthmatic patients with regular steroid use than those with intermittent steroid use and healthy children in the control group.
Conclusion :  There were associations between childhood asthma and its treatment and impairment of growth parameters.