Investigating the effects of asthma medication on the cognitive and psychosocial functioning of primary school children with asthma

The effects of asthma medication on the cognitive and psychosocial functioning of primary school children with asthma are investigated. A questionnaire survey was conducted in a primary school in Stellenbosch (South Africa) with a population of six hundred and thirty-five students. Among these stude...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Early child development and care 2003-12, Vol.173 (6), p.699-709
Main Authors: Naudé, H., Pretorius, E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic Failure
Asthma medication
At Risk Persons
Attendance Patterns
Biochemistry
Children
Cognition
Cognitive Ability
Cognitive and psychosocial functioning
Diseases
Drug Therapy
Education
Elementary School Students
Foreign Countries
Illness
Interpersonal Competence
Low Achievement
Medicine
Multidisciplinary psychoeducational assistance
Outcomes of Treatment
Preadolescents
Primary Education
Psychoeducational Methods
Psychosociology
Short Term Memory
Social relations
Sociology
South Africa
Time Management
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Summary:The effects of asthma medication on the cognitive and psychosocial functioning of primary school children with asthma are investigated. A questionnaire survey was conducted in a primary school in Stellenbosch (South Africa) with a population of six hundred and thirty-five students. Among these students, fifty-nine asthmatic children were identified, their ages varying between 6 and 13 years. A case study was also conducted with a 9-year-old asthmatic boy, receiving long-term treatment with corticosteroids from the age of 1 year. The findings suggest concentration deficits and inattentiveness, impaired short-term memory, poor time management (decreased psychomotor functioning), mood changes, symptoms associated with allergic- tension-fatigue syndrome, and functional impairment of academic and psychosocial functioning. It is concluded that children with asthma might be at risk for school failure due to these functional impairments, including school absenteeism, and/or adverse secondary effects (side-effects) of asthma medication. Furthermore, it is recommended that a multidisciplinary psycho-educational assistance model be adopted, and educational programs be implemented to promote age-appropriate functioning at home and at school. Service delivery for the child living with asthma, should include healthy parent-teacher partnerships, and close monitoring of adverse psychiatric and cognitive side effects.
ISSN:0300-4430
1476-8275
DOI:10.1080/0300443032000178645