ASTHMA IN CHILDREN

Abstract

The present-day conception of the exciting factors which cause asthma differs considerably from that of former years. Toward this newer conception a voluminous literature has been contributed, beginning with the pioneer studies of Schloss, Walker, Koessel, Cooke and others; yet, with all this vast accumulation of valuable material, the number of communications devoted only to asthma in children is strikingly small. These deal mainly with special phases of asthma and are of a statistical character most often lacking in essential details; in those communications reporting a large number of cases, the observations covered too short a period of time to permit satisfactory conclusions. The material for this and for subsequent studies is based on 100 consecutive cases of asthma, 92 per cent of which are Jewish children, living on the East Side of Harlem, and ranging in age from 6 months to 14 years. All of these subjects were under