Asthma Nationally:
In 2018, there are estimated to be "24.8 million Americans" diagnosed or living with asthma (ALA, 2018). This is equivalent to 7.7% of the population (ALA, 2018). The mortality rates associated with asthma nationally in 2016 sat at 3,518 people. The death rates are higher among the older population, see the image below from the CDC 2016 Database (ALA, 2018).
Asthma Locally:
Within Dallas County, there are estimated to be "217,879 residents living with asthma" as of the 2015 needs assessment (Dallas County, 2016). As of 2019, asthma in Dallas county was "more prevalent in women than men", 11% to 5% (Parkland & DCHHS, 2019). Asthma seems to be more prevalent in the southern areas of Dallas county, see the image below from the Parkland Asthma Registry (Parkland & DCHHS, 2019).
Ted Talk & Prompt:
What social determinants are a common denominator between the "high risk" zipcodes and asthma? What is one way to help reduce these high levels in those areas?
References:
ALA. (2018). Asthma Trens and Burden. American Lung Association. Retrieved July 31, 2022, from https://www.lung.org/research/trends-in-lung-disease/asthma-trends-brief/trends-and-burden
Dallas County. (2016). As Equitable, Healthy, and Safe Dallas County. Dallas County. Retrieved July 31, 2022, from https://www.dallascounty.org/Assets/uploads/docs/hhs/dchs/DallasCountyCommunityHealthNeedsAssessment2016-FINAL.PDF
Parkland & DCHHS. (2019). Dallas County Community Health Needs Assessment 2019. Parkland. Retrieved July 31, 2022, from https://www.parklandhealth.org/Uploads/public/documents/PDFs/Health-Dashboard/CHNA%202019.pdf
Hello Sophia!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed how you added that "Within Dallas County, there are estimated to be "217,879 residents living with asthma" as of the 2015 needs assessment (Dallas County, 2016). As of 2019, asthma in Dallas county was "more prevalent in women than men"," I furthered my research on that and discovered that it's possibly due to sex hormones and lung cells.
Within your blog I would have loved to read more on the cause of that.
Hello Sophia!
ReplyDeleteI have family members who used to have Asthma but it seems to have dissipated throughout life. We always have inhalers just in case anything goes wrong. I’m not surprised that it affects those who are in the older age range compared to the younger ones. All of those that I have seen Asthma in, are predominantly females as you stated. I think I’ve only seen 3 males in my lifetime who had Asthma that talked about it. When looking at zipcodes, seeing the Dallas County lower areas that are most affected doesn’t surprise me also. I know when it comes to the South of Dallas, things tend to be more “rough” over there. The income is low, or most of them are unemployed and the communities don’t have a lot of green life. I know that a focus on communities in that area can help with reducing the number of asthma attacks. Within schools, having a program to help with managing indoor air quality can help reduce asthma which can actually help increase performance and decrease absents (Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], 2022). Also knowing what is triggering the Asthma, we then can help with managing the problem by reaching out to communities about it and educating them. Charts like that are very interesting to me as I’m a visual person, so it’s good to see who is affected by zip code.
I love watching TED talks, as it’s so interesting and informative. As Dr. Luz Claudio explains the results from asthma and the communities around her in NYC, it isn’t shocking to see that boroughs that are more “well” off, don’t necessarily have a lot of cases of asthma hospitalization compared to those who are in the lower income. But then again, looking at data for the Manhattan area in the neighborhood Trinity, the median household income is low with 22,679 dollars with no cases reported. It makes you wonder, what other health disparities happen in certain neighborhoods and zip codes. I do see that the borough of Queens, doesn’t have that many high cases but compared to the Bronx which seems to suffer from Asthma. When looking at that, the percentages of African Americans and Latinos are higher compared to areas that are lower in those percentages.
Reference:
Environmental Protection Agency. (2022, July 6). Asthma- Improving Health in Communities and School . EPA. https://www.epa.gov/asthma/asthma-improving-health-communities-and-schools
Thanks for your reply Linda. I think look at health issues and disparities by zip code makes a huge difference. While not everything is related to the zip code, if can help uncover some similarities between zip codes that share a common issue. In my current role, we generally use zip codes to determine the social determinants and use that to base our outreach. This has made a huge difference as we are able to target a specific population that is struggling and customize our outreach to their needs.
DeleteHello Sophia,
ReplyDeleteGreat and informative blog. Mold , Air pollution and Lung diseases including Asthma all are connected to each other like a dilemma. These environmental health problems raise a public health concerns. Multiple social determinants of health contribute to asthma disparities: low household income; environmental inequities (e.g., outdoor air pollution and substandard housing) and living in poor communities; exposure to pests, mold, air pollution (including secondhand smoke); and high levels of stress. Texas gained more than 3.5 million people from April 2010 through July 2018. Overpopulation is important risk factors for pollution and other health conditions