RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To determine family function of pediatric patients with asthma. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Family medicine clinic number 51, Mexican Institute of Social Security, Primary Care, in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. PARTICIPANTS: Fifty families were studied; 25 of which had a pediatric patient previously diagnosed with asthma, and a control group of 25 with pediatric patients without asthma. METHODS: From September 2006 to February 2007 family function was evaluated using family APGAR and associations were estimated using odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). RESULTS: Family dysfunction was more often present in families with asthmatic patients compared to those without; OR=3.7 (95% CI, 1.1-13). Severe dysfunction is markedly higher in families with asthmatic members. CONCLUSIONS: Family dysfunction is more frequent in families with asthmatic children; family functionality should be seen as an important part of the integral approach in those families.
