Comparison of two forms of education for asthmatic patients

BACKGROUND: The education programs have demonstrated to be an important poi nt in the management of asthmatic patients. The aim of the present study wa s to assess if an intensive group asthma education program was able to impr ove a simplified and individual asthma education program, both with a self- management plan included. PATIENTS AND METHOD: A prospective randomised controlled trial was conducte d over 12 months and 73 moderate-severe asthmatic patients were included. P atients were randomly assigned to control or study group. Patients in contr ol group received individual and simplified education with a self-managemen t plan and patients in study group attended an "asthma school" in small gro ups where they received a three hours education program in three weeks. The outcome measures were: number of hospital admissions, observation unit adm issions, emergency visits and unscheduled general practice consultations. K nowledge, adherence to treatment, ability with inhaler devices, airway func tion, environmental control measures and quality of life, They were assesse d at the beginning and the end of the study. RESULTS: At the end of the study period the outcome of morbidity had improv ed in both groups but the number of observation unit admissions (p = 0.028) and unscheduled general practice consultations (p = 0.022) was substantial ly lower in study group. This group also demonstrated improvement in enviro nmental control measures and better inhaler technique and knowledge (p = 0. 007), In adherence, lung function or quality of life there were no differen ces between groups. CONCLUSIONS: in patients with asthma better results can be obtained with an intensive group asthma education program than with the individual and simp lified program.