Adherence to environmental control recommendation among children with asthma and allergic rhinitis

Results 96 patients were recruited. The median age was 10.3 years, and 66% (64) were male. All patients had a diagnosis of allergic rhinitis and 84 patients (87.5%) had a diagnosis of asthma. The responder was the child’s mother in 87% of cases. 56% of responders had secondary or tertiary education and 45% of them were atopic. 76% of responders recognized that their children’s doctors had instructed them about environmental control measures. In order to reduce house dust, 91% of houses had hard flooring and 97% were cleaned by moping the floor daily (52%) or weekly (45%). Moreover, 92% of housekeepers used to wash bedding every week, 72% minimized dust-accumulating objects, 90% removed soft toys, 83% removed rugs and 51% removed curtains. However, only 33% encased mattresses and pillows in impermeable covers. Other practices included ventilating the house by opening the windows every day in 96%, carefully cleaning the house to avoid cockroaches in 95% and chemical controlling cockroaches in 26% of cases. For pet allergen avoidance, 54% of families chose not to have pets. Among the families who had them, 52% kept the pet out of the main living areas and 27% used to wash the pet every week. Finally, 33% of families had at least one member who smoked, but only 3% of caregivers quit smoking. Among non-smoking caregivers, 29% reduced their child’s exposure to sources of passive smoke outside the family.