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What Drives Prescribing of Asthma Medication to Children? A Multilevel Population-Based Study
Mira G. P. Zuidgeest , and colleagues
Background Asthma in children is a major clinical and public health problem. Because diagnosing and treating the condition is a challenge, there are differences in the prescribing of asthma medication. The aim of this study is to investigate how and to what degree patient, family, and doctor characteristics influence the prescribing of asthma medication in children.
What This Study Found The patient, family, and doctor have a significant influence on prescribing asthma medication in children. Prescribing is strongly related to children's asthma and symptoms and to other respiratory diseases, such as bronchitis. The presence of asthma in the parents is also associated with prescribing asthma medication to children. In addition, in this study, every extra family contact with the doctor led to a 10% extra chance of receiving asthma medication. There is more variation between doctors in prescribing for children younger than the age of 6 years compared with older children. This may be due to the complexities in diagnosing asthma in young children.
Implications
- Uncertainties in diagnosing asthma may result in more prescribing that is influenced by family and doctors.
- Despite the ongoing search for better ways to diagnose asthma in children, there is still a diagnostic gap, especially in preschool children. This gap contributes to differences between doctors in prescribing asthma medication, based on personal preferences and general attitudes toward prescribing.