Seasonal pattern of emergency department visits by children with asthma

Background: It is important to understand the factors associated with seasonal asthma attacks among children so we can evaluate them appropriately.Aim: The study examined the seasonal variation of asthma-related emergency department visits by children in Istanbul.Methods: This descriptive study examined all paediatric patients with asthma who visited the paediatric emergency department of a tertiary hospital in Istanbul, Turkiye, between January 2017 and December 2022. Asthma diagnosis was based on physical examination and clinical history of the patients and asthma-related visits during winter, spring, summer, and autumn were considered repeated measurements. Data analysis was done using SPSS 25.0.Results: Visits by asthmatic children to the emergency department constituted 4.9% of all visits. Some 56.9% of the asthmatic children were male and 43.1% were female. Asthma-related emergency department visits were 10.4% in 2017 and 3.6% in 2022. Visits to paediatric emergency departments due to asthma decreased from 19 685 in 2017 to 7485 in 2022. Between 2017 and 2022, children aged 0-5 years represented the highest proportion of visits (64-72.8%). Asthmatic children aged 0-5 years and 6-11 years were admitted to the hospital mostly in January (13.5%, 13.5%) and December (12.8%, 14.0%). In the age group 12-18 years, the visits occurred mostly in January (11.9%) and March (11.2%).Conclusion: The frequency and number of asthma-related visits to the paediatric emergency department decreased over the 6-year period of this study. There were increases in visits in October, November, December, and January, and decreases in June, July and August.

Automated summary

This study examined the seasonal variation of asthma-related emergency department visits by children in Istanbul. The results showed a decrease in the frequency and number of visits over the study period, with the highest number of visits occurring in winter and early spring.