Abstract
Bronchial asthma is a persistent inflammation of the lung airways resulting in significant airflow obstruction. The study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of childhood asthma. A cross-sectional analytic study enrolled 120 patients through a stratified method. The prevalence rate was calculated by dividing the number of clinician-diagnosed asthma cases by the total pediatric patients visiting the emergency department. The study focused on asthma cases that were clinician-diagnosed in children aged between 1 and 15 years. Data collected through structured forms contained characteristic variables, and results are represented in frequency tables, bar charts and pie charts. A p-value of 0.05 or less is considered statistically significant. The study revealed an asthma prevalence rate of 5.70%, predominantly among boys (55.8%) aged 10-12 years, with mean age of 8.73 ± 3.72 years, revealing a significant gender disparity. Notably, 91(75.8%) of the participants were known to be allergic to various allergens. 94 (78.3%) of the participants were breastfed, 85 (70.8%) breastfed for a period over 6 months, and 73 (60.8%) introduced to cow milk before completion of their first year of life. There was no significant association between childhood asthma, breastfeeding practices, or allergy status in this cohort study. Prevalence of bronchial asthma among Sudanese children is higher than other reports from pediatrics emergency departments. A substantial proportion of participants exhibited allergic conditions, suggesting the necessity for extensive research in this domain.