Asthma health disparities in U.S. Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders

Elimination of health disparities is a public health priority that is integral to healthy communities. Asthma is a serious and often debilitating health condition, with well-documented racial and ethnic disparities in prevalence. Because asthma is a substantial health problem, with markedly increasing prevalence and mortality rates, there is an urgent need to adequately characterize asthma in high-risk populations such as Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders (NHOPI) who may be disproportionately affected. However, little is known about the burden of asthma in NHOPI compared to other races in the United States. This study is an investigation of the prevalence of asthma amongst NHOPI, both nationally and in the State of Hawai‘i, using ten years of data (2000 – 2009) from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). In addition, the relationships between asthma prevalence, race/ethnicity (i.e., NHOPI vs. others), socio-economic factors (e.g., income, education level, health care coverage) and demographic factors (e.g., age, gender, body mass index, smoking status) are explored using multiple logistic regression analysis. This information, on temporal trends and the heterogeneity in asthma prevalence amongst NHOPI and/or other risk factor groups, could contribute useful insight into public health interventions for promoting healthy communities that will reduce asthma morbidity and mortality.