Background: An increasing trend in asthma morbidity and mortality has been reported in a number of countries, including New Zealand, Great Britain, France, Italy, the United States, and Asia; however, no previous studies have evaluated the trend in admission and epidemiology of asthma in the state of Qatar.
Objective: To describe the patterns of epidemiology of asthma patients who require hospitalization in the state of Qatar.
Methods: This study is a cross-sectional analysis of discharge data for 2002 from the Hamad General Hospital, State of Qatar, for patients who were hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of asthma.
Results: The asthma hospitalization rate was 42 per 100,000 population. The male-female ratio was 47:53. Of these patients, 35% were younger than 15 years, 60% were between 15 and 64 years, and 5% were 65 years or older. The average cost per admission was dollar 1,544. The mean length of stay was 6.4 days and was longer for females, Qatar nationals, older patients, and those with comorbid conditions. Infectious diseases were common in younger patients, whereas cardiovascular diseases and diabetes were the most common comorbidities in middle-age and elderly asthmatic patients. December was the peak month for hospitalization. The mortality rate was 1.7 per 100,000 population.
Conclusions: For asthma patients in Qatar, the hospitalization rate is below the recommended Healthy People 2000 goal and the mortality rate is low.