TY - JOUR
T1 - Resilience in low-socioeconomic-status children with asthma
T2 - Adaptations to stress
AU - Chen, Edith
AU - Strunk, Robert C.
AU - Trethewey, Alexandra
AU - Schreier, Hannah M.C.
AU - Maharaj, Nandini
AU - Miller, Gregory E.
N1 - Funding Information:
Supported by National Institutes of Health grant HL073975 .
PY - 2011/11
Y1 - 2011/11
N2 - Background: Low socioeconomic status (SES) is a strong predictor of many health problems, including asthma impairment; however, little is understood about why some patients defy this trend by exhibiting good asthma control despite living in adverse environments. Objective: This study sought to test whether a psychological characteristic, the shift-and-persist strategy (dealing with stressors by reframing them more positively while at the same time persisting in optimistic thoughts about the future), protects low-SES children with asthma. Methods: One hundred twenty-one children aged 9 to 18 years with a physician's diagnosis of asthma were recruited from medical practices and community advertisements (mean age, 12.6 years; 67% male; 61% white). Shift-and-persist scores and asthma inflammation (eosinophil counts and stimulated IL-4 cytokine production) were assessed at baseline, and asthma impairment (daily diary measures of rescue inhaler use and school absences) and daily peak flow were monitored at baseline and at a 6-month follow-up. Results: Children who came from low-SES backgrounds but who engaged in shift-and-persist strategies displayed less asthma inflammation at baseline (β = 0.19, P <.05), as well as less asthma impairment (reduced rescue inhaler use and fewer school absences; β = 0.32, P <.01) prospectively at the 6-month follow-up period. In contrast, shift-and-persist strategies were not beneficial among high-SES children with asthma. Conclusion: An approach that focuses on the psychological qualities that low-SES children develop to adapt to stressors might represent a practical and effective starting point for reducing health disparities. Moreover, the approaches that are effective in low-SES communities might be different from those that are optimal in a high-SES context.
AB - Background: Low socioeconomic status (SES) is a strong predictor of many health problems, including asthma impairment; however, little is understood about why some patients defy this trend by exhibiting good asthma control despite living in adverse environments. Objective: This study sought to test whether a psychological characteristic, the shift-and-persist strategy (dealing with stressors by reframing them more positively while at the same time persisting in optimistic thoughts about the future), protects low-SES children with asthma. Methods: One hundred twenty-one children aged 9 to 18 years with a physician's diagnosis of asthma were recruited from medical practices and community advertisements (mean age, 12.6 years; 67% male; 61% white). Shift-and-persist scores and asthma inflammation (eosinophil counts and stimulated IL-4 cytokine production) were assessed at baseline, and asthma impairment (daily diary measures of rescue inhaler use and school absences) and daily peak flow were monitored at baseline and at a 6-month follow-up. Results: Children who came from low-SES backgrounds but who engaged in shift-and-persist strategies displayed less asthma inflammation at baseline (β = 0.19, P <.05), as well as less asthma impairment (reduced rescue inhaler use and fewer school absences; β = 0.32, P <.01) prospectively at the 6-month follow-up period. In contrast, shift-and-persist strategies were not beneficial among high-SES children with asthma. Conclusion: An approach that focuses on the psychological qualities that low-SES children develop to adapt to stressors might represent a practical and effective starting point for reducing health disparities. Moreover, the approaches that are effective in low-SES communities might be different from those that are optimal in a high-SES context.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jaci.2011.06.040
DO - 10.1016/j.jaci.2011.06.040
M3 - Article
C2 - 21824649
AN - SCOPUS:80055087026
SN - 0091-6749
VL - 128
SP - 970
EP - 976
JO - Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
JF - Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
IS - 5
ER -