HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Deprez, R. D. Articles by Baggott, L. A. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Deprez, R. D. Articles by Baggott, L. A. Related Collections Asthma Surveillance

Ronald D. Deprez, PhD, MPH, Nancy L. Asdigian, PhD, L. Christine Oliver, MD, MS, Norman Anderson, MSPH, Edgar Caldwell, MD and Lee Ann Baggott, MD

Ronald D. Deprez and Nancy L. Asdigian are with the Public Health Research Institute, Portland, Me. L. Christine Oliver is with the Occupational Health Institute, Boston, Mass. Norman Anderson, Edgar Caldwell, and Lee Ann Baggott are with the American Lung Association of Maine, Augusta.

Correspondence: Requests for reprints and for a copy of the survey instrument should be sent to Ronald D. Deprez, PhD, MPH, Public Health Research Institute, 120 Exchange St, Suite 200, Portland, ME 04101 (e-mail: rdeprez{at}phrg.com).

Objectives. We developed and evaluated a statewide and community-level asthma surveillance system.

Methods. Databases and measures included a community prevalence survey, hospital admissions data, emergency department/outpatient clinic visit records, and a physician survey of diagnosis and treatment practices. We evaluated the system in 5 Maine communities varying in population and income.

Results. Asthma hospitalizations were high in the rural/low-socioeconomic-status communities studied, although diagnosed asthma was low. Males were more likely than females to experience asthma symptoms, although they were less likely to have been diagnosed with asthma or to have used hospital-based asthma care.

Conclusions. Databases were useful for estimating asthma burden and identifying service needs as well as high-risk groups. They were less useful in estimating severity or in identifying environmental risks.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. J. Reeves, S. Lyon-Callo, M. D. Brown, K. Rosenman, E. Wasilevich, and S. G. Williams Using billing data to describe patterns in asthma-related emergency department visits in children. Pediatrics, April 1, 2006; 117(4 Pt 2): S106 - S117. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				B. P. Lanphear and P. J. Gergen Invited Commentary: Asthma Surveillance in US Children Am. J. Epidemiol., July 15, 2003; 158(2): 105 - 107. [Full Text] [PDF]