title: Understanding disparities in asthma outcomes among African Americans.
abstract: Racial disparities in asthma morbidity and mortality are greater than differences in asthma prevalence. This finding suggests that following the diagnosis of asthma, blacks receive substantially different care than non-Hispanic whites, through available health care systems and their social support networks, and racial differences in relevant environ-mental exposures contribute to differences in morbidity and mortality. An overview of factors that may contribute to disparities in asthma prevalence, morbidity, and mortality,including contextual factors, is provided.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. jford@jhsph.edu
authors.forename: Jean G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Ford
authors.forename: Lee
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: McCaffrey
mesh_terms: D001741:Black or African American; D000393:Air Pollutants; D000485:Allergens; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D006801:Humans; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D000485:Allergens