Outpatient management of asthma in children age 5-11 years: guidelines for practice.
OBJECTIVE
To increase awareness among nurse practitioners (NPs) regarding diagnostic and treatment guidelines for asthma for the 5-11 year age group recently updated by the National Asthma Education Prevention Program-Expert Panel 3 (NAEPP-EPR3).


METHODS
NAEPP-EPR3 guidelines for the diagnosis and management of asthma released from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute in August 2007, selected clinical trials, meta-analyses, and clinical reviews.


CONCLUSIONS
Recent research has revealed that children suffering from asthma in the United States are underdiagnosed and their asthma is poorly controlled. Compelling evidence supports that children classified as having persistent asthma following NAEPP-EPR3 guidelines benefit from daily inhaled corticosteroid therapy, yet many are misclassified and undertreated.


CONCLUSIONS
With application of current guidelines from NAEPP-EPR3, NPs can more effectively assess, diagnose, treat, and foster a collaborative self-management plan for children age 5-11 years. These interventions will result in an improved quality of life and decreased health risks for this young population.
Tri-County Internal Medicine, 807 Jackson Trace Road, Wetumpka, AL 36092, USA. barbarajwatts@yahoo.com
Barbara
B
Watts
D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D015897:Comorbidity; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D008487:Medical History Taking; D009722:Nurse Practitioners / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009730:Nursing Assessment; D010347:Patient Care Planning; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010358:Patient Participation; D010808:Physical Examination; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D017751:Safety Management; D012648:Self Care; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013147:Spirometry; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents