Childhood Asthma Prevalence and Severity in Zarqa City, Jordan.

Objective: to investigate the prevalence of asthma and the severity of asthma symptoms in Jordanian school children. Methods: a random sample of 2819 students aged 6-18 years was drawn from 10 schools in Zarqa city, Jordan. Parents of children from the selected classes participated by completing the ISAAC questionnaire in relation to their child. Results: the prevalence of wheezing in the past year was 14.8% with 5.9% of parents indicated that their child have asthma or have had asthma. The severity of asthma symptoms was manifested in the high number of attacks, besides the sleep disturbance because of wheezing experienced by most children. Exercise induced asthma was reported by 60.6% of children and 5.9% of parents indicated that their child was diagnosed with asthma. Conclusion: the results suggest a high prevalence of asthma with severe symptoms in Zarqa. A negative impact could result if this trend continues without proper interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]