What is Asthma?
Asthma is a chronic disease that affects the lungs. It occurs when the airways narrow, making it difficult to breathe. Although there is no cure for asthma, symptoms can be controlled with proper clinical treatment, appropriate use of medication, self-management education, and limited exposure to environmental triggers.
Asthma affects approximately 25 million people (5.1 million who are children under age 18 years) in the US.[1]
In Hawai’i, approximately 104,400 (9%) adults and 30,000 (10%) children currently have asthma (BRFSS, 2018). According to an analysis of 2018 BRFSS data, 15% of Native Hawaiian adults reported having current asthma, compared to the state average of 9%.[2]
Asthma is one of the most common chronic childhood diseases both in the United States and in Hawai‘i.[3,4] When not effectively managed, people often seek treatment which drives up emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalizations, and their associated costs to the health care system, as well as negatively impacts school and work attendance and quality of life. Infants and young children (0 to 4 years of age) make up the majority of ED visits and hospitalizations due to asthma.[5]
Learn more about Hawai’i asthma objectives and strategies in the Hawai‘i Asthma Plan 2030.
Sources:
[1] CDC National Asthma Data (Prevalence in 2019). Accessed April 2022.[2] Hawaii State Department of Health, Hawaii Health Data Warehouse. (BRFSS, 2018). Accessed April 2022.
[3] Hawaii Health Matters :: Promising Practices :: Healthy Kids Express – Asthma Program. Accessed July 2023.
[4] CDC State Asthma Data (Prevalence in 2019). Accessed April 2022.
[5] Hawaii State Department of Health, Hawaii Health Data Warehouse. (HHIC/Laulima Data Alliance, 2018). Accessed April 2022.
