Pv. Targonski et al., TRENDS IN ASTHMA MORTALITY AMONG AFRICAN-AMERICANS AND WHITES IN CHICAGO, 1968 THROUGH 1991, American journal of public health, 84(11), 1994, pp. 1830-1833
Death certificate data were used to examine asthma mortality among Afr
ican Americans and Whites aged 5 through 34 years in Chicago from 1968
through 1991. African Americans experienced consistently higher asthm
a mortality throughout the period. Asthma mortality remained stable am
ong Whites from 1968 through 1991 but increased by 337% among African
Americans from 1976 through 1991 (P < .001). The increase was greatest
among 20-through 34-year-olds. Between 1979 and 1991, outpatient and
emergency department deaths increased significantly, while the proport
ion of dead-on-arrival cases remained stable at 51%. This shift to non
-inpatient deaths suggests that lack of access to health care may play
a role in increasing asthma mortality.