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School-based asthma intervention effective in reducing school absences
School nurses who administered asthma medication each day to asthmatic children living in urban areas led to decreased symptoms, improved school attendance and appeared to be cost effective, according to study results.
Katia Noyes, PhD, MPH, of the department of surgery at the University of Rochester in New York, and colleagues analyzed data on 525 children aged 3 to 10 years who were enrolled in the School-Based Asthma Therapy program. Children in the program were randomly assigned to asthma medication given each school day by the school nurse or usual care.
“The health benefit of the intervention was equal to about 158 symptom-free days gained per each 30-day period per 100 children,” Noyes and colleagues wrote. “The programmatic expenses summed to an extra $4,822 per 100 children per month. The net saving due to the intervention (reduction in medical costs and parental productivity, and improvement in school attendance) was $3,240, resulting in the incremental cost-savings difference of $1,583.”
The researchers noted some study limitations, specifically the children’s individual access to insurance, and they said it remains unknown whether the standards in the intervention could be maintained over time in other schools.
Disclosure: Noyes reports no relevant financial disclosures.
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