Asthma disparities persist among children in New Zealand

Posted 2 days ago by Helene Marsters Less than a minute to read

We have updated our Asthma prevalence and hospitalisations in children aged 0-14 years. Here are the key findings.

In 2023/24, around 99,000 children aged 2–14 years were diagnosed with asthma and were currently taking asthma medication.
There were 7533 hospitalisations in children aged 0–14 years in 2023, down from 7862 in 2022.
Children under five years old continued to experience lower rates of asthma prevalence but higher hospitalisation rates, particularly among one-year-olds, compared to other age groups. In 2023, the hospitalisation rate for those aged 0–4 was 13 times higher than that of 10–14-year-olds.
In 2023/24, Māori children aged 2–14 years experienced a higher prevalence of asthma compared to non-Māori children. In addition, Pacific children aged 0–14 years have consistently had higher hospitalisation rates than other children since 2001.
Asthma prevalence and hospitalisation rates were higher in children living in the most deprived areas (NZDep 2018 quintile 5) than children living in the least deprived areas.
Children living in main urban areas had higher hospitalisation rates than children living in rural areas in 2023.
The Auckland district had the highest asthma hospitalisation rate in 2022 and 2023.

Find out more here.