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Asthma in the United States

CDC publishes Surveillance for Asthma in the USA 1980-1999 (prevalence and asthma burden). MMWR 2002 and 2004

Since 1980 CDC's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) conducts the National Health Interview Survey annually, which includes questions regarding to asthma and asthma-related activity limitations. 
This report presents national data regarding self-reported asthma prevalence, school and work days lost because of asthma, and asthma-associated activity limitations (1980-1996); asthma-associated outpatient visits, asthma-associated hospitalizations, and asthma-associated deaths (1980-1999); asthma-associated emergency department visits (1992-1999); and self-reported asthma episodes or attacks (1997-1999). This report also describes progress made towards developing and improving surveillance for asthma at the state and local level

Main results

1.-About 16 million (7.5%) U.S. adults have got asthma.
In a newer data analysis (2) self-reported current asthma prevalence among racial/ethnic minority populations ranged from 3.1% to 14.5%, compared with 7.6% among whites.
2.-The self- or proxy-reported 12-month prevalence of asthma increased 73.9% during 1980-1996.
3.-During 1980-1996, rates of school absence per child with asthma per year and the percentage of children with asthma who had limited activity because of it decreased slightly (4.9%--3.7%), although the change was not statistically significant
4.-During 1980-1999, the number of office visits for asthma as primary diagnosis increased from 5.9 million to 10.8 million
5.-During 1992--1999, the number of emergency department visits for asthma increased 36%, depending on the region, and the rate of emergency department visits for asthma increased 29%
6.-The hospitalization rate for asthma peaked in the mid-1980s and has gradually declined since then
7.-The number of deaths and death rates from asthma increased gradually during 1980-1995. Although a determination with certainty cannot be made, data for 1996-1998 indicate that mortality rates are starting to stand or decrease