Abstract
Poor asthma control is common and remains a frequent cause of hospital admission. The aim of this study was to identify risk factors associated with uncontrolled asthma among adult patients on follow up at Jimma University Specialized Hospital (JUSH). A facility based cross-sectional study involving patient interview and chart review was conducted among asthmatic patients aged 18 years and older who were attending chest clinic of JUSH for at least 3 months. Multivariate logistic regression was employed to examine the association between variables. One hundred ninety seven asthmatic patients were included in the study. More than 57% were females. The mean age of the patients was 41.75 (±15.54). Twenty four percent of the patients had one or more comorbid conditions. According to the classification by Global Initiative for Asthma Management and Prevention (GINA), 33.6% and 18.7% of study participants had moderate persistent and severe persistent asthma, respectively. Among the patients who received asthma medications, only 21% was according to GINA guideline recommendation. Accordingly, 127 respondents (64.5 %) were found to have uncontrolled asthma. Low monthly income (p=0.023), presence of comorbidity (p=0.007), moderate persistent asthma (p=0.027), severe persistent asthma (p=0.03) and use of SABA (short acting beta2 agonist) alone as anti-asthmatic medication (p=0.000) were significantly associated with uncontrolled asthma. In conclusion, majority of the patients had uncontrolled asthma and this was significantly associated with low income, presence of comorbid condition, asthma severity and use of SABA alone as anti-asthmatic medication. Clinicians’ adherence to the available asthma management guidelines is paramount important.
