Asthma Sufferers Favor Quick Relief Over Long-term Control

People who currently have asthma are much more likely to rely on drugs that offer quick relief for symptoms such as shortness of breath, wheezing, or coughing, than medications for long-term control, according to the latest News and Numbers issued by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Approximately 31 percent of sufferers say that they use quick-relief medications to control symptoms of asthma, compared with about 14 percent who rely on longer-term preventive medicines for control. Another 31 percent use both types of medications and 24 percent use none.

The federal study further found that among people whose asthma was active when surveyed:

More than one-fourth reported having a peak flow meter at home for measuring their ability to expel air from their lungs.

Nearly half (48 percent) of adults said they had at least one asthma attack within the previous 12 months.

Women were more likely to have asthma attacks than men 50 percent versus 40 percent

AHRQ, a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, works to improve the quality, safety, efficiency and effectiveness of health care in the United States. The data in this AHRQ News and Numbers comes from the Agency's Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, a highly detailed source of information on the health services that Americans use, how frequently they use them, the cost of these services, and how they are paid.

For more information on this AHRQ News and Numbers see Asthma Treatment and Management among the U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population, 2004,MEPS Statistical Brief # 152.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
540 Gaither Rd.
Rockville, MD 20850
United States
http://www.ahrq.gov/