Morbilidad y letalidad hospitalaria por asma bronquial

it is known that the attention to asthmatic patients is an increasing epidemiological problem that overload the hospital services. a descriptive study was conducted by analysing temporary series (1995-2004) in order to describe morbidity and lethality from asthma. information was obtained about the patients seen at the emergency department, the discharged and the dead and about their municipalities of residence. mathematical methods (relative change and absolute difference) and graphs (semiaverage for the analysis of the secular tendency) were used. the statistical technique of analysis of the frequency distribution was applied to describe the frequencies according to the municipality of residence of the patients that received attention from 1995 to 1999 and in 2003. they were compared by using the homogeneity test. it was observed that the medical attentions at the emergency departments and the discharges of asthmatic patients had a decreasing tendency during the period. the discharged patients/patients seen at emergency departments index rose until 2002 and dropped later up to 2004, when 6.7 % of those seen at the emergency department were hospitalised. medical attentions increased for the municipalities of la lisa, boyeros, cerro, habana vieja, centro habana y san miguel del padrón. it was concluded that the favorable tendency in morbidity and lethality from asthma is the result of the improvement in the quality of the attention given to these patients by the health system.