Christine E Brown, MPH¹, Thomas Matte, MD, MPH¹, Adam Karpati, MD, MPH¹, and Daniel Kass, MSPH². (1) Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, 2 Lafayette St., 20th Fl., New York, NY 10007, 212-227-4674, cbrown1@health.nyc.gov, (2) Environmental and Occupational Disease Epidemiology, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, 253 Broadway, 6th Fl., New York, NY 10007

Background: Asthma triggers at home are prevalent in low-income neighborhoods with high rates of asthma morbidity. Little comparative, population-based data from higher-income neighborhoods are available. We analyzed 2002 New York City (NYC) Housing and Vacancy Survey (HVS) data on housing conditions that may be linked to asthma trigger exposure in NYC dwellings in relation to the presence of occupants with asthma and neighborhood income. Methods: HVS measures included occupant reports of rodents (ROD), cracks and holes in interior walls (CHIW), water leaks (WL), occupants who smoke (SMK), occupants with asthma (ASTH), and occupants with an asthma attack in the past 12 months (ASAT). NYC Community Districts (CDs) were assigned to tertiles based on median income from census estimates. Results: Based on 15,894 responses (98% response rate), the estimated prevalences among occupied dwellings were 20% with ROD, 17% with CHIW, 15% with WL, 24% with SMK, 15% with ASTH, and 7% with ASAT. The prevalences of ROD, CHIW, WL, and SMK were higher in dwellings occupied by persons with asthma and in lower income communities. For example, in dwellings with ASTH, ROD was 3.1 times more common in low- than in high-income CDs (Figure 1.) Conclusions: Though limited to self-reported conditions, HVS data are consistent with prior reports of frequent exposure to asthma triggers in low-income neighborhoods and suggest that such exposures are far less common in high-income neighborhoods. These data reinforce the need to address asthma triggers at home as part of efforts to reduce asthma disparities.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this poster session the participant will be able to

• List at least one common asthma trigger found in the home
• Identify housing conditions that may contribute to asthma trigger exposure
• Understand the relation of neighborhood income in New York City to asthma triggers among persons with asthma.

Keywords: Asthma, Housing

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.