A Study to Assess the Psychosocial Impairment among Children with Bronchial Asthma Attending Asthma Clinic at A Tertiary Care Hospital

Introduction Bronchial Asthma is the most common chronic disease in childhood and has been designated a public health problem due to its increasing prevalence in recent decades. Asthma in childhood has a significant impact on the lifestyle of children and their families. Fear, stress, anxiety and depression are common psychological features associated with asthma among children. Objectives 1. Assess the psychosocial impairment among children with Bronchial Asthma attending the asthma clinic as measured by Paediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC).2. Determine the association of psychosocial impairment with severity of the disease. Method A cross-sectional descriptive survey approach was used to assess the psychosocial impairment among children (N=70) suffering from bronchial asthma. Data was collected through a semi-structured tool which included demographic data and a standard Paediatric Symptom Checklist tool. Results 21 (30 %) of the participants elicited psychosocial impairment in the form of multiple aches & pains, easy fatigability, self centered attitude, regression in developmental age & argumentative behavior. There was no statistical significance between socio-demographic variables and psychosocial impairment at 5 % level of significance. However there was strong association between psychosocial impairment and severity of disease among the study group (p less than 0.001). Conclusion Bronchial Asthma is the most common chronic illness of childhood and young children experience the greatest burden of asthma morbidity. The current study showed an association between severity of disease and psychosocial impairment. The combined burden of chronic illness, psychosocial impairment and poverty in our country has an impact on quality of life of these children and their families. Hence these findings clearly suggest a need for an early bio-psychosocial approach to care for these vulnerable children with bronchial asthma.