Why Is Asthma Important?

Asthma is a chronic lower respiratory disease (CLRD) that “affects the airways that carry oxygen in and out of the lungs” (CDC, http://ephtracking.cdc.gov/showAsthma.action). Individuals with asthma have sensitive airways that may become narrow or blocked when triggered by pollen, tobacco smoke, mold, physical activity, dust or air pollution (CDC, breathing easier). In the United States, more than 30 million people are affected by asthma (CDC, breathing easier). In Arizona, CLRDs were the third leading cause of death among residents and thus were identified as one of the 15 leading public health issues in the state by the 2014 Arizona State Health Assessment (ADHS, 2014). In addition to being a public health concern asthma has a significant economic impact in the United States. The annual cost of asthma in the United Sates is $56 billion (CDC asthma factsheet). Furthermore, in 2008, asthma caused 10.5 million missed days of school and 14.2 million missed days of work (CDC …show more content…
Out of the CHIS respondents with asthma, 9.2% had at least one asthma-related ED visit of hospitalization. An association was not found between CO or NO2 and asthma-related ED visit or hospitalization. However, after adjusting for age, gender, race/ethnicity, poverty, and health insurance status, a 49% increase in prevalence of asthma-related ED visits or hospitalizations per 10 ppb increase in annual average 03 and a 29% increase in odds per 10 µg/m3 in PM10 was found. Overall, this study indicates that exposure to high levels of O3 or PM10 increases the odds of an asthma-related ED visit or hospitalization (Meng, Rull, Wilhelm, Lombardi, Balmes, & Ritz,