Study of Asthma in Children Aged 5 to 14 Years: According to Global Initiative for Asthma Criteria

Asthma is the most common chronic disease in children. Its incidence has been increasing in recent decades and represents a real public health problem responsible for morbidity and mortality in children in Sub-Saharan Africa. Aims: The general objective of our study was to determine asthma prevalence in 5 - 14-year-olds based on spirometry data. The specific objectives were to diagnose asthma according to GINA criteria, analyze the factors linked to obstruction, and analyze the results obtained in comparison with the conclusions of practitioners in the physiology laboratory. Materials and Methods: Retrospective study from March 2014 to October 2018 on medical records of children who underwent respiratory function testing at the physiology and functional exploration laboratory of the UCAD. Results: The study included 151 children aged 5 to 14 years, with a slight male predominance (sex ratio 1.15). Nearly 25% of children had a history of declared asthma. Approximately 27.15% of children had bronchial obstruction, defined by a decreased FEV1/FVC ratio. According to GINA criteria, only 8.61% of children were considered asthmatic. Among children with obstruction, 31.7% had bronchial reversibility after bronchodilator administration. An influence of anthropometric data on spirometric parameters was noted. Indeed, lung volumes and flows were positively correlated with age, weight, and height. The FEV1/FVC ratio tended to be negatively correlated with age and height. Conclusion: This study highlighted a significant prevalence of bronchial obstruction in children in the studied population. However, the diagnosis of asthma according to GINA criteria was less frequent. The results suggest that age, sex, and environmental factors may influence respiratory function in children.