[Prospective epidemiologic considerations on asthma morbidity in patients admitted to the St. Maria Emergency Hospital Clinic for Children, Iaşi].

Authors present the results of a clinical epidemiological assessment of a retroprospective study carried out on a sample of 6717 records of children assisted for asthma in the "Sf. Maria" Emergency Clinic Hospital for Children Iasi, between 1990-2004. The epidemiological and statistical mathematics methods, both classical and computerized, highlighted an increase in the incidence and prevalence values in 2000, as a consequence of National Program for Asthma. For the entire period of study, the morbidity values increased in the cold and transit season, due to the acute respiratory infections, and in the warm season, by the atmospheric pollen. The anatomic-physiological peculiarities of the respiratory tubes explained the higher prevalence of asthma in males aged until 10 years old. Asthma had an increased incidence in the age groups of 4-6 years old (28.21%) and 7-9 (30.42%), as a result of the entrance in collectivities where there is a high risk for acute respiratory infections. A lower prevalence of asthma in young-age groups was explained by a difficult diagnosis. The results above-mentioned can offer orientations for the clinical epidemiological surveillance programs of asthma.