Asma pediátrica: o impacto das internações hospitalares

These figures arenot so different from those found in developedcountries, where asthma is seen as a significant publichealth problem.According to the Departamento de Informacaoe Informatica do Sistema Unico de Saude (DATASUS,Unified Health Care System Department ofInformation and Information Science), nearly200,000 children under 14 years of age anddiagnosed with asthma were hospitalized under theBrazilian Sistema Unico de Saude (SUS, Unified HealthCare System) in 2004, even considering that therewas probably significantly under-reporting of thedisease in various regions of the country. If weconsider that a reduction in the number of hospitaladmissions is one of the objectives to be achievedthrough the adequate control of the disease, wecan conclude, even through the use of an isolatedfinding, that the asthma management programs inBrazil are far from being adequate, which has asignificant impact on the health of children.Even more significant is the fact that asthma isresponsible for one in every 250 deaths worldwide.Many of these deaths are avoidable, since they arerelated to inappropriate medical care, lack ofadequate information, and delays in obtainingtreatment during more severe attacks. In Brazil, therewere 3000 asthma-related deaths in 2004 amongSUS patients alone.A recent study