Abstract:

Purpose: Our study aims to assess asthma control conditions, medication conformity and anxiety levels in children with asthma and their families during the new type of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) period. Tools and Methods: 67 children and parents between 8 and 12 years of age followed with asthma diagnosis for at least six months. A survey was conducted to parents with demographic characteristics such as age, gender, asthma medications and questions about COVID-19 prepared according to the 5 Likert scale. In addition, the Childhood Asthma Control Survey (ACT) and the Children's Status-Continuous Anxiety Reserve (C-DSKE) were applied to assess the level of anxiety and the Parents' Status-Continuous Anxiety Reserve (DSKE) for Adults. The average age of patients is 9.5±1. 2 years, the average period of follow-up of asthma (the quarters between December) was 36 (21-66) months and 45 (67.2%) men. Most of the children used asthma medications regularly. Children's C-DSKE status and constant anxiety scores correlated to their parents' DSKE status and duration anxiety scores in a statistically meaningful positive direction. Parents who thought they would suffer from the disease, they could not find effective treatment and vaccination against COVID-19 were found to have a higher level of anxiety. Compared by gender of children, asthma follow-up periods, asthma control conditions, regular follow-up and regular use of asthma drugs, there was no difference between the children's C-DSKE and the parents' DSKE scores. Result: Regular controls and drug compliance during the pandemic period are extremely important in controlling asthma symptoms in children. Taking into account the effects of the pandemic in asthma children, psychosocial assessments during clinical checks may have positive effects on children’s mental health and disease control.

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Abstract:

Objective: We aimed to evaluate asthma control status, drug compliance and anxiety levels of children and their parents who were followed up with the diagnosis of asthma during the COVID-19 pandemic. Material and Methods: Sixty-seven children aged between 8-12 years diagnosed with asthma and their parents were prospectively recruited to the study. A questionnaire including demographic features such as age, gender, asthma  medications and questions about COVID-19 prepared according to a 5-point Likert scale was conducted to the parents. Children completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventories for Children (STAI-C) scales, and childhood asthma control test(c-ACT). Parents also fulfilled STAI scales. Results: The mean age of the patients was 9.5±1.2 years, the median follow-up period for asthma (C-ACT) was 36 (21-66) months, and 45 (67.2%) were male. Most of the children were using their asthma medication regularly. Children’s STAI-C state and trait anxiety scores showed a statistically significant positive correlation with parents’ STAI state and trait anxiety scores. The anxiety levels of parents who thought that they would get the disease and that there would be no effective treatment and vaccine against COVID-19 were found to be higher. Conclusion: During the pandemic period, regular asthma follow-up and drug compliance are very important controlling asthma symptoms in children. Considering the effects of the pandemic in children with asthma, psychosocial evaluations during outpatient controls may have positive effects on children’s mental health and disease control.