A Survey of Pediatricians' Knowledge on Asthma Management in Children

Asthma is one of the most common acute and chronic conditions in children, and thepediatricians are expected to provide an important role for asthma care in this age group, howeverthere is no published information describing the different aspects of their practices about childrenasthma in iran. this study was done to characterize the knowledge of the iranian pediatriciansabout the diagnosis, treatment and education of asthma in children.validated questionnaires were completed by 193 pediatricians from different parts of iranduring the international congress of pediatrics in tehran. a total of 193 returned questionnaires(96.5%) were eligible for the survey and analysis.about 49% of the respondents were male and 18% were sub-specialists. ~'heezing was themost common mentioned symptoms in taking asthma into consideration. about 40% of thesephysicians had no plan for doing spirometry in eligible children and 35.2% of them did not havefamiliarity with peak flowmeter. also about 17.6% of them paid no regular visits to theirasthmatic patients. only 29% of the respondents indicated that they would prescribe inhaledcorticosteroids for a 6-year-old child with moderate persistent asthma and 73.3% of them wouldprescribe inhaled bronchodilator (salbutamol) for an acute asthmatic attack as the first drug, while17.1% of them used epinephrine injection for this purpose. about 42.2% of the respondents didnot consider any education or action plan for their patients and only 60.6% of them had access tostandard guidelines and educational programs.the results show that there are numerous aspects of children asthma management in iranwhich are not consistent with standardized guidelines and recommendations. this survey and theattained information suggest areas for interventions to improve the pediatricians' knowledgeabout asthma and the disease management.