PREVALENCE OF ZEEQUN NAFAS SHO'ABI (BRONCHIAL ASTHMA) IN AN URBAN AREA: A CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY

Abstract

Introduction: The WHO estimates that there are 15- 20 million people suffering with asthma in India and the prevalence of asthma has been found to be around 7% in the majority of surveys done. Several studies have been conducted in India on asthma prevalence in children and adolescents, but very few studies have been conducted in adults. Hence the aim of this study is to find the prevalence of Zeequn Nafas Sho'abi (Bronchial Asthma) in an Urban area of Pune city. Materials and Method: Through Simple Random Sampling 700 participants of age between 20-60 years of either sex were included in the study. To diagnose the asthma spirometry was done. Observation and Result: Among 700 study subjects, 30 were diagnosed with asthma through spirometry. Hence the prevalence of asthma was found to be 4.28%. The difference between asthmatics and non asthmatics in relation to age, occupation, education, socio economic status and marital status was found to be significant. Whereas, gender and religion was found to be not significant. Conclusion: The overall prevalence of asthma diagnosed through spirometry was 4.2% in our study which is slightly lower than the nationwide prevalence of 7%. Education regarding the disease may affect and improve the quality of life of patients significantly.