Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Medicine - Department of Pediatrics

Background:The presence of sleep respiratory disorders (SRDs) in childrenwith asthma may cause difficultto control asthma. Objectives:The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of SRDsamong 150 Egyptian asthmatic children and its effect of level of asthma control and frequency of exacerbations and nocturnal symptoms. Methods:A structured questionnaire was used to collect demographic data of the child and his/her family, grade of asthma exacerbation if present and Asthma control level was assessed according to Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA). Then the Tucson Children{u2019}s Assessment of Sleep Apnea (TuCASA) screening questionnaire was administered. Results:Nearly 80.67% of asthmatic children were not well controlled.About 18.67% had sleep apnea symptoms and 43.34% had habitual snoring.More than half of children experienced nocturnal asthma symptoms in the last 4 weeks.Severity of acute asthma and control of asthma were significantly worse in cases with nocturnal asthma symptoms (p = 0.03 and p<0.001, respectively). In a logistic regression model, male sex and presence of snoring were significant predictors for poor asthma control. ConclusionsSRDswere highly prevalentamong Egyptian asthmatic children. Male sex and snoring were significant predictors for poor asthma control among them

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