mothers' knowledge and practice regarding bronchial asthma among pre-school children

Abstract

Background Bronchial asthma is the most common chronic disease among children. It develops in childhood before age five years that impacts morbidity and mortality rates among children as well as their quality of life. Consequently, it is important to address mothers' awareness of the management and prevention of bronchial asthma attack among their children. The aim of this study is to assess mothers' knowledge and practice regarding bronchial asthma among pre-school age children. Methodology: A cross sectional study design was carried out on 383 mothers in selected family health centers and primary health care units at Mansoura districts. Four tools were developed by the researcher for collecting the data of this study as the following: socio-demographic and economic characteristics of mothers and their children, Structured interview questionnaire to assess knowledge, and subjective practice of mothers regarding bronchial asthma. Results: The study revealed that mothers had moderate level of knowledge about bronchial asthma in addition most of the studied mothers had improper practices regarding to prevention of bronchial asthma attack. Conclusion: It is necessary to improve mothers' knowledge and practice regarding bronchial asthma. Finally, the researcher recommended that a continuous health education program regarding bronchial asthma for mothers.