Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Lung Function and Treatment Decisions in Children with Asthma: A Retrospective Study

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Asthma outcomes in children and adolescents largely depend on parental adherence to prescribed treatment plans. This study investigates how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced parental decision-making in managing their children’s asthma, regardless of whether the children were infected with SARS-CoV-2. Material and method: In this research, 146 children with asthma were analyzed based on the following data: demographic parameters (gender, age group, and residence), before and after measurements of FeNO and pulmonary function test parameters were performed to assess the evolution of asthma for infected and non-infected children, exacerbations, parents’ compliance with the treatment, changes in treatment steps performed by physicians, and the GINA asthma control levels. Results: The effect of parent self-management of doses was evident in the variation of FeNO and pulmonary function test parameters before and after COVID-19 disease, including children with asthma who did not contract the virus, in the decrease in well-controlled asthma cases, as well as in the number of exacerbations per year. A step-down in treatment doses was statistically associated with increased FeNO values (p < 0.0005), and decreased FEV1 values (p = 0.025). Higher values of FeNO were statistically significantly associated with a higher number of exacerbations per year (p < 0.0005). There was a statistically significant moderately strong association between the treatment steps evolution (decided by the attending physician) and parents’ self-management of doses in the attempt to assess the control of the disease of children with asthma (p = 0.019). Also, 80.95% of children for whom the parents performed a step-down in dose no longer presented well-controlled asthma, leading to a statistically significant association relative to the level of asthma control and doses adjustments (p < 0.0005). Conclusions: During epidemiological circumstances, a strong collaboration between the parents/caregivers/pediatric patients with asthma and attending physicians is essential to correctly assess the symptoms and to comply the asthma treatment with ICS and a bronchodilator in order to control the disease.