Survey Fact Sheet

The Asthma G.A.P. in America: 
General Awareness and Perceptions
Key Survey Findings

The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) and AstraZeneca have collaborated to conduct an extensive national survey assessing awareness and attitudes toward asthma in adults 18 years of age and older.  This comprehensive survey includes the views of a robust, ethnically diverse cross-section of Americans.

Two-thirds of the asthma patients surveyed report that they have their condition under control; however, over half experience symptoms (such as shortness of breath, wheezing, coughing, chest tightness and/or phlegm production) at least once a week.

The findings from this survey not only show that control is important to those with asthma, but that asthma patients need to be better educated about how to best control the disease.

About the Survey
Ipsos conducted the telephone survey on behalf of AAFA and AstraZeneca between January 22, 2007, and March 4, 2007, among 4,042 U.S. adults 18 years of age and older.  This included a nationally representative sample of 2,029 Americans with or without asthma (849 men and 1,180 women), and additional people were added to provide a total sample of 510 African Americans, 500 Hispanics and 616 asthma patients.

All survey data were weighted to reflect the demographic profile of Americans 18 years of age and older nationwide, in key states, in specific ethnic groups and/or of adult asthma patients, based on statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau.

In theory, with probability samples of this size, the overall sampling error for the national sample results is +/-2.2 percentage points, with 97.8% certainty.  Sampling error for the various sub-sample results is higher and varies.  These telephone samples are not probability samples.

Key results from the survey include:

Living with Asthma

  • Asthma was three times more prevalent among individuals who live with a family member also diagnosed with asthma than in the general sample population
  • Six in 10 of the asthma patients (62%) mentioned that asthma limits their usual activities or enjoyment of everyday life to varying degrees
  • Almost all of the asthma patients (94%) experienced at least one of the five common asthma symptoms in the past year (i.e., shortness of breath, wheezing, coughing, chest tightness and phlegm production)
  • More than half of the asthma patients (63%) experience symptoms at least once a week; 29% of asthma patients experience at least one symptom a day
  • Asthma affects not just the patients themselves, but their loved ones as well
    • 72% of the adults who live with an asthma patient report they are concerned about their loved one

Asthma Management
Based on the survey findings, one may conclude that asthma patients have a misconception regarding what control is and would like to know more about it.  Additionally, respondents tend to underestimate the importance of avoiding potential asthma triggers and the need to carry a rescue medication.

  • While 68% of patients report that their asthma is well controlled, a similar proportion of patients (74%) would like to be able to better control their asthma
  • Many of the asthma patients use rescue medication regularly; in fact, one in three used a rescue inhaler at least once a day in the past four weeks
  • The main indicator that an individual has his or her asthma under control was perceived to be if he or she took the controller/maintenance medication every day (mentioned by 77%)
  • Half of the asthma patients (54%) wish they knew more about their asthma treatment
  • Seven in 10 (71%) would explore new medications with their doctor if they heard about them
  • Over two-thirds (69%) of the respondents most frequently turned to family/friends, a medical professional or the media (i.e., television, radio, magazines and newspapers) for information about asthma, its symptoms, causes and effects

Regional Asthma
Asthma patients around the country have similar experiences with asthma, highlighting the fact that better asthma education is needed on a national level, not just in one area of the country.

  • Americans around the country have similar rates of asthma diagnosis, but alarming gaps in knowledge are prevalent
    • Southerners are significantly less likely than respondents from other regions to believe that being exposed to pollutants can increase an individual's chances of developing asthma
    • New York and North Carolina residents are significantly less likely than the nation as a whole to correctly identify asthma symptoms, with only 80% able to identify at least one asthma symptom, compared to 87% nationally
    • California residents are significantly more likely than residents of Texas to identify any effective treatments for asthma (92% vs. 85%)
    • Reported knowledge of asthma is lowest in Ohio compared to all other states studied, where only 30% of residents report they know a great deal or a fair amount about asthma
  • More than half (average of 62%) of all regional asthma patients say asthma limits their usual activities or enjoyment of everyday life to varying degrees
  • Almost all asthma patients across the four U.S. census regions would like to be able to better control their asthma (average of 74%)
  • Nearly half (46%) of asthma patients around the country fear their asthma will get worse

Asthma in Women
The proportion of adults who were diagnosed with asthma was higher among women than men.

  • Two-thirds (65%) of the female asthma patients mentioned that asthma limits their usual activities or enjoyment of everyday life to varying degrees, and almost all of the female asthma patients (95%) experienced at least one of five common asthma symptoms in the past year
  • A majority of the female asthma patients (71%) would like to be able to better control their asthma
  • Many of the women used rescue medication regularly; in fact, one in three (34%) of the female asthma patients used a rescue inhaler at least once a day in the past four weeks
  • Seven in 10 (72%) of the female asthma patients would explore new medications with their doctor if they heard about them

Asthma and Ethnicity
Only 23% of the Hispanic respondents and only 31% of African American respondents recognize that their ethnicity was a risk factor for asthma.

Hispanic population

  • Among Hispanics, while only 8% of those surveyed report being diagnosed with asthma, 58% report that they have experienced asthma symptoms

African American population

  • A similar gap exists among African Americans; 13% report having been diagnosed with asthma, while 58% report experiencing any asthma symptoms
  • Specific factors, such as respiratory infections (58% vs. 71%) and living in an inner city (55% vs. 68%) are less likely to be recognized by African Americans than the general sample population as risk factors for asthma

About Asthma
Asthma is one of the most serious chronic diseases in the United States.  An estimated 20 million Americans had asthma in 2004.  Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by excessive sensitivity of the lungs, or increased reaction of the airways, to various environmental stimuli or triggers.

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255997 10/07