Psychiatric morbidity in a community sample of Arab children with asthma

To determine the extent of psychiatric morbidity among Arab schoolchildren with asthma in the United Arab Emirates, we surveyed a stratified community sample of schoolchildren (6-13 years) using the Rutter questionnaire (teac hers' and parents' versions). Comparisons were made between children with a sthma and controls matched for age, sex, and school. About 16 per cent of c hildren with asthma were simultaneously reported by parents and teachers to show significant psychopathology, Rates of disturbance were significantly higher in asthmatics than controls. Unexpectedly, the psychopathology was p redominantly of the behavioral type. Cultural factors may account for this unconventional feature.