"A" is for Asthma: Asthma in Elementary School Children in Alachua County, FL

Molly Burges

Date of Award

2009

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Natural Sciences

First Advisor

Gilchrist, Sandra

Keywords

Asthma, Epidemiology, School

Area of Concentration

Natural Sciences

Abstract

This purpose of this study is to evaluate the rates of asthma in public elementary school children as a function of the school's free/reduced lunch rate, the school's age, proximity to an interstate (I-75), as well as distance and nitrogen oxide (NOx) contribution levels from a 225 megawatt (MW) coal-fired power generating plant in Alachua County, FL. The asthma data for this study were obtained from the parentreported health cards at the twenty-four public elementary schools located in Alachua County. The data were statistically analyzed to determine if these factors are correlated to school asthma rates. The rate of students receiving free and reduced price lunches at each school was used as an indicator of the socioeconomic status of the students. The rate of free/reduced lunches and the age of the school are good predictors of asthma rates at local public elementary schools according to the current study. These two factors are highly correlated. Alachua County has higher asthma rates than the state average and as the local municipal utility company is considering plans to add a new power generation plant, the possibility of this chronic disease becoming even more prevalent is a concern in the community.

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