Asthma prevalence among Iraqi children

Abstract

Asthma is a chronic disease resulting from inflammation of the respiratory tract and is more common in children than adults. There are few studies conducted in Iraq to determine the rate of this disease. Previous studies were searched on various scientific research sites such as Scopus, Google Scholar, PubMed, and the Iraqi academic journals website for the period from 2000 to 2023. Five studies were included in this review out of thirty-five studies conducted previously. Studies showed that the highest prevalence of asthma was in the capital, Baghdad, 22.7%, and the lowest was in Erbil Governorate, 7%. This discrepancy may result from the difference in environmental conditions between different regions of Iraq. It is necessary for Iraqi health authorities to conduct comprehensive and modern studies to determine the extent of the prevalence of asthma in Iraq.