Black race, low education level linked to poorly controlled asthma in adults

Key takeaways:

• In an urban adult population, researchers found a link between Black race and poorly controlled asthma.
• Having well-controlled asthma was related to receipt of prior diagnostic allergy testing.

WASHINGTON — Among adults with asthma living in Chicago, poorly controlled asthma was linked to Black race and a low education level, according to data presented at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Annual Meeting.

Using results from a survey, Megan Elios, MD, allergy/immunology fellow in the department of pediatrics at University of Chicago Medicine, and colleagues assessed 318 adults with asthma from health systems across Chicago to find out how asthma control is linked to race, education level and previous diagnostic allergy testing.

Researchers figured out each patients’ level of asthma control using the asthma control questionnaire.

Of the total cohort, 51% of adults identified as Black, and researchers found a significant link between this demographic and poorly controlled asthma (P = .002) in multivariable linear regression analysis.

This analysis also revealed a relationship between an education level of high school or less (31%) and poorly controlled asthma control (P < .001), according to researchers.

Lastly, most of the study population (82%) reported previous diagnostic allergy testing, and this was linked to well-controlled asthma compared with poorly controlled asthma (P = .02).

“Interventions that address social determinants of health and access to quality care are needed especially in urban, minoritized populations,” Elios and colleagues wrote.

Reference:

Elios M, et al. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2024;doi:10.1016/j.jaci.2023.11.091.