Many Children With Asthma Do Not Have Medications Ready

MONDAY, Aug. 20, 2018 — Many low-income urban preschool-aged children with asthma do not meet the criteria for home medication readiness, according to a study published online Aug. 7 in Pediatrics.

Jennifer A. Callaghan-Koru, Ph.D., from the University of Maryland in Baltimore, and colleagues examined asthma medication readiness among low-income urban minority preschool-aged children. A caregiver survey was administered to caregivers of 288 enrolled children, and five criteria in the medication readiness index were observed.

The researchers found that 96 percent of the caregivers reported a rescue medication, but only 79 percent had it in the home; all five of the medication readiness criteria were met by only 60 percent. Only 79 percent of the 161 children prescribed a controller medication had it in the home; only 49 percent met all five criteria for medication readiness. The odds of meeting all five readiness criteria for controller medications were increased in association with fewer worries and concerns about medications.

“Inadequate availability of asthma medications in the home is a barrier to adherence among low-income urban preschoolers,” the authors write. “Assessment of medication readiness should be incorporated into clinical care because this is an under-recognized barrier to adherence, and interventions are needed to improve medication management and knowledge to increase adherence.”

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Posted: August 2018

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