Asthma treatment needs: a comparison of patients' and health care professionals' perceptions.
BACKGROUND
Patients' perceptions of asthma tend to differ from those of clinicians, who primarily focus on asthma control. Patients' treatment needs and preferences may not be adequately addressed.


OBJECTIVE
The aims of this study were as follows: to provide data on unmet treatment needs and to investigate the main finding of a qualitative study using a questionnaire study.


METHODS
To assess treatment needs in patients with asthma, focus groups were conducted with patients/parents and clinicians. Based on these results, quantitative surveys of adult patients and parents were performed in the United Kingdom, Germany, and Spain.


RESULTS
The UK focus group comprised 11 patients and 8 parents; in Germany, there were 10 patients and 11 parents; in Spain, there were 5 patients and 8 parents. The focus groups showed some differences between clinicians' and patients'/parents' perceptions of treatment. For patients, side effects meant long-term effects (ie, 10-20 years); for clinicians, it meant occasional local problems. The quantitative study comprised 454 participants: 310 adult patients (mean [SD] age, 37.13 [13.12] years) and 142 parents (children's mean [SD] age, 13.98 [1.37] years), plus 2 nonspecified. Some patients reported good asthma control and simultaneously reported frequent exacerbations. Most patients and parents expressed a preference for a simpler regimen using fewer drugs, and most had concerns about their treatment. Although some patients concurred with treatment guidelines, 62.2% tended to rely on reliever medication (ie, bronchodilators). Additionally, 6.9% described their asthma as very well-controlled but reported experiencing asthma symptoms > or =3 days per week. Finally, 1.9% of patients and 2.1% of parents reporting very well-controlled asthma also reported visiting the emergency department or calling a physician for a home visit in the previous 3 months.


CONCLUSIONS
Asthma patients and parents of asthmatic children had unmet treatment needs and may interpret medical terminology differently than clinicians.
Hyland
Michael E
ME
School of Psychology, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, Devon PL4 8AA, United Kingdom. mhyland@plymouth.ac.uk
Ståhl
Elisabeth
E
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001249:Asthma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001993:Bronchodilator Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005060:Europe; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D010348:Patient Care Team; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D001993:Bronchodilator Agents