Elizabeth Banda, BA¹, Kelly A. Quinn, MPH¹, Madeleine U. Shalowitz, MD, MBA¹, and Carolyn A Berry, PhD². (1) Research Institute, Evanston Northwestern Healthcare, 1001 University Place, Evanston, IL 60201, 773-581-9122, ebanda2@yahoo.com, (2) Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, New York University, 726 Broadway, 5th Floor, New York City, NY 10003

Purpose. Disparities in asthma rates among the major racial/ethnic groups are well-documented, yet disparities across the Latino subgroups have only been recently acknowledged. Heterogeneity challenges the assumption of "ethnicity" as the basis for reporting prevalence. We sought to document childhood asthma rates among Latino subgroups to better understand the disparities. Methods. We distributed a validated asthma survey with 73% sensitivity and 74% specificity (compared to the "gold standard" of physician examination) to parents of children attending 15 low-income public elementary schools. The survey yielded 3 groups: diagnosed asthma, possible asthma and no signs of asthma. Parents reported child's race/ethnicity, including Latino/Hispanic subgroups. Results. Of 6458 screens for Latino children, overall 10.1% were diagnosed asthmatics and 14.5% were possible asthmatics. Analysis by country of origin shows a more heterogeneous picture. Puerto Ricans (n=494) showed significantly higher rates of diagnosed (20.2%) and potentially undiagnosed (15.4%) asthma than Mexicans/Mexican Americans (7.4% and 13.9%; n=2989; p<.001). Of interest, children of mixed Mexican and Puerto Rican descent also showed higher rates (16.1% diagnosed and 16.1% possible asthma) (n=137; p<.001) than Mexicans/Mexican Americans. Rates for Cubans/Cuban Americans were likewise extremely high, but numbers were small (18.4% diagnosed and 23.7% possible asthma) (n=38; p=.005). "Other" Latinos (n=2739) also had high rates (10.8% diagnosed and 14.7% possible asthma; p<.001). Conclusion. When reporting findings, it is important to investigate ethnic groups individually. Doing so will allow us to better understand the determinants of disease and propose inventions suitable for different populations

Learning Objectives:

• To recognize the importance of ethnicity when collecting and presenting data.
• To describe childhood asthma disparities among Latino subgroups

Keywords: Asthma, Latinos

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.