Asthma Health Disparities and Care Optimization
Summary
Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the airways that imposes a significant global burden, with prevalence and outcomes varying markedly by race, ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Health disparities in asthma manifest as differences in hospital admission rates, emergency visits and disease control, reflecting the combined influence of environmental exposures, social determinants and health-care system factors. Optimisation of asthma care requires a comprehensive approach encompassing evidence-based clinical management, enhanced access to specialist services, patient education and community-level interventions. Recent advances in personalised treatment algorithms, telehealth solutions and integrated care pathways have demonstrated potential to reduce emergency admissions and improve long-term control. Addressing upstream structural inequities—such as housing quality, education and income distribution—alongside proximal clinical measures is essential to achieve equitable outcomes and close the asthma care gap across diverse populations.
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Asthma Health Disparities and Care Optimization publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in asthma health disparities and care optimization across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Health disparity: A measurable difference in health outcomes among distinct population groups.
Social determinant of health: A non-medical factor, such as income, education or housing, that influences an individual’s health.
Structural determinant: A fundamental driver of inequity, including policies, economic systems and social stratification.
Intermediary determinant: A proximal factor—such as living conditions or health behaviours—that mediates the effect of structural determinants.
Care optimisation: The process of improving the quality, efficiency and accessibility of health-care delivery.
Health literacy: An individual’s ability to obtain, process and comprehend basic health information and services.
References
- Racial differences in length of stay and readmission for asthma in the all of us research program. Journal of Translational Medicine (2024).
- Structural and Social Determinants of Health in Asthma in Developed Economies: a Scoping Review of Literature Published Between 2014 and 2019. Current Allergy and Asthma Reports (2020).
- Health Literacy and Income Mediate Racial/Ethnic Asthma Disparities. HLRP Health Literacy Research and Practice (2019).
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