Objective: To find out the prevalence change of asthma in children aged 0 - 14 years during the ten years.
Methods: A nationwide randomized survey, covering 27 cities, 27 identical cities/municipalities were chosen for comparison which were divided into 6 sections: mid-south, southwest districts, east-China section, northeast, northwest and north-China districts.
Results: Surveys were exclusively in the urban areas, including a population of 287,329 children aged 0 - 14 years in 2000 and 399,193 children in 1990. 4301(1.50%) were screened out as asthma associated children in 2000. Among them 3540(82.31%) children, aged 3 years or more, were diagnosed as asthma of children; 761 (17.69%) as asthma of infants and young children aged less than 3 years; In 1990, 3625 (0.91%) were diagnosed as asthma, and in which 2691 (74.23%) were children aged 3 years or more, other 934 (25.77%) were aged less than 3 years; And male predominate female [the prevalence of male and female are 1.85% (2 733/147 969) and 1.13% (1568/139,360), the rate is 1.74:1.00 in 2000, the prevalence of male and female are 1.08% (2265/210,137) and 0.72% (1360/189,056), the rate is 1.67:1.00 in 1990]. About 90% asthmatic children had onset of wheezing before 6 years old [90.30% (3884/4301) in 2000, and 95.26% (3453/3625) in 1990]. The prevalence of the average asthma of all the 0 - 14 years old asthma population (including asthma of older children and of infants) in 1990 and 2000 is 0.91% and 1.50% respectively. The current prevalence has increased by 64.84%. There was statistically significant difference in asthma prevalence among the 27 cities, in 2000 bring the highest in Shanghai (483/14,468) and Chongqing (374/11,200), both are 3.34%, and the lowest in Lhasa (35/6676), is 0.52%. In 1990, the highest in Chongqing (199/7651) is 2.60%, the lowest in Lhasa (14/15,360) is 0.09%. Two surveys showed that more than 95% patients were treated with antibiotics, and about 35.41% (1523/4301) with the inhaled glucocorticosteroid in 2000, in 1990 it is very rarely.
Conclusions: There has been a significant increasing trend (64.84%) of asthma prevalence during the ten years. >From the data of present survey it was inferred that there has been quite some improvement in the accuracy of diagnosis and in the practice of steroid inhalation therapy by the pediatricians in different cities, but we must generalize the GINA hardly and improve the quality of asthmatic children's lives.