Home remediation in low-income housing shows significant effect on childhood asthma

Children with asthma living in low-income, urban public housing had significantly fewer visits to the emergency department (ED), less use of rescue medication, and less disrupted sleep with a program that combines home repairs to reduce asthma triggers, training, and comprehensive care, called Controlling Asthma Through Home Remediation. Preliminary program findings also showed a reduction in daytime asthma symptoms, as reported in Environmental Justice.

Ray López, Director, Environmental Health & Family Asthma Program, LSA Family Health Service, Inc., New York, NY, describes the goals and implementation of the program in East Harlem, a low-income, largely minority neighborhood in New York City. Children living in East Harlem are nearly 13 times more likely to have an asthma-related ED visit than are children living in the adjacent high-income neighborhood of the Upper East Side.

The article in Environmental Justice entitled 'Reducing Childhood Asthma Triggers in Public Housing: Implementation and Outcomes from an East Harlem Community Health Worker Program' , builds on past evidence on the effectiveness of household interventions. Removing asthma triggers such as mold and pests from low-income housing can help address the socioeconomic and racial disparities in childhood asthma in the U.S.