title: The prevalence of asthma risk and contributing factors in underserved Vietnamese children in Orange County, CA.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Vietnamese constitutes one of the fastest growing minority groups in America, with the largest concentration in Orange County (OC), CA. Yet, there are limited data on the prevalence of asthma in Vietnamese children. Our study evaluated the risk of asthma and key contributing factors among these children living in OC, CA.
  
  
  METHODS
  Five elementary schools in OC that were predominantly Vietnamese with low socioeconomic status were selected for participation. Validated surveys were sent to parents of all students ages 3-12 in these schools with materials available in English, Vietnamese and Spanish. Surveys included questions to identify the risk of asthma and related key factors. Surveys were completed by parents and returned to schools.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 1530 participants eligible for analysis. Asthma risk was 30.4%, and of these, 22.6% had no prior diagnosis. Contributing factors to identification of those at risk were male gender (p < 0.001), preferred use of the Vietnamese language (p = 0.004), longer duration in the United States (p = 0.019), and smoker in the household (p = 0.015).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of asthma risk in our community of low socioeconomic status Vietnamese children was found to be higher than commonly appreciated. Furthermore, a considerable number of these children had not been previously diagnosed. Given the limited information in this population, our current findings of asthma risk and key contributing factors could affect health care policies that allow appropriate funding for programs dedicated to asthma care in this and other growing population.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Family Medicine , University of California , Irvine , CA , USA .
authors.forename: Tan
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: a Department of Family Medicine , University of California , Irvine , CA , USA .
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kilgore
authors.affiliation: b Morphew Consulting, LLC , Manhattan Beach , CA , USA .
authors.forename: Tricia
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Morphew
authors.affiliation: c Orange County Asian & Pacific Islander Community Alliance , Garden Grove , CA , USA .
authors.forename: Jacqueline
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tran
authors.affiliation: d Program in Nursing Science, University of California , Irvine , CA , USA , and.
authors.forename: Jill
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Berg
authors.affiliation: e CHOC Children's Hospital of Orange County , Orange , CA , USA.
authors.forename: Stanley
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Galant
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D001213:Asian; D001249:Asthma / Q000208:ethnology*; D002140:California / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014744:Vietnam / Q000208:ethnology
chemical_list: D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution
keywords: Duration in the United States; health care policies; language; low socioeconomic status; minority; prior diagnosis; smoker; surveys