Asthma Statistics

  • In 2009, approximately 24.6 million people in the United States (or 8.2%) have asthma.16
  • An estimated 300 million people worldwide suffer from asthma, with 250,000 annual deaths attributed to the disease.2
  • Approximately 250,000 people die prematurely each year from asthma. Almost all of these deaths are avoidable.2
  • The prevalence of asthma in different countries varies widely, but the disparity is narrowing due to rising prevalence in low and middle income countries and plateauing in high income countries.17
  • Workplace conditions, such as exposure to fumes, gases or dust, are responsible for 11% of asthma cases worldwide.2
  • About 70% of asthmatics also have allergies.2
  • It is estimated that the number of people with asthma will grow by more than 100 million by 2025.2
  • In 2008, asthma hospitalizations were 1.5 times higher among female than male patients.18
  • Asthma accounts for approximately 500,000 hospitalizations each year.3
  • 13 million school days are missed each year due to asthma.3
  • Asthma accounts for about 10.1 million missed work days for adults annually.3
  • Asthma was responsible for 3,384 deaths in the United States in 2005.4
  • The annual economic cost of asthma is $19.7 billion. Direct costs make up $14.7 billion of that total, and indirect costs such as lost productivity add another $5 billion.1
  • Prescription drugs represented the largest single direct medical expenditure related to asthma, over $6 billion.1
  • In 2006, asthma prevalence was 20.1% higher in African Americans than in whites.1
  • The prevalence of asthma in adult females was 23% greater than the rate in males, in 2006.1
  • In 2005, 8.9% of children in the United States currently had asthma.6
  • Nine million U.S. children under 18 have been diagnosed with asthma at some point in their lifetime.6
  • Nearly 4 million children have had an asthma attack in the previous year.6
  • More than 12 million people in the United States report having an asthma attack in the past year.5
  • Asthma accounts for 217,000 emergency room visits and 10.5 million physician office visits every year.7
  • In 2006, almost 2.5 million people over the age of 65 had asthma, and more than 1 million had an asthma attack or episode.1
  • In a survey of U.S. homes, approximately one-quarter had levels of dust mite allergens present in a bed at a level high enough to trigger asthma symptoms.8
  • In 2007, 29% of children who had a food allergy also had asthma.9
  • About 23 million people, including almost 7 million children, have asthma.10
  • Asthma is the third-ranking cause of hospitalization among children under 15.11
  • An average of one out of every 10 school-aged child has asthma.12
  • Annual expenditures for health and lost productivity due to asthma are estimated at over $20 billion, according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.13
  • The latest data from Centers for Disease Control indicate an asthma prevalence rate of 8.4% in the United States. 14
  • The number of people with asthma continues to grow. One in 12 people (about 25 million, or 8% of the population) had asthma in 2009, compared with 1 in 14 (about 20 million, or 7%) in 2001.15
  • More than half (53%) of people with asthma had an asthma attack in 2008. More children (57%) than adults (51%) had an attack. 185 children and 3,262 adults died from asthma in 2007.15
  • About 1 in 11 children (10%) had asthma and 1 in 12 adults (8%) had asthma in 2009. Women were more likely than men and boys more likely than girls to have asthma.15
  • About 1 in 9 (11%) non-Hispanic blacks of all ages and about 1 in 6 (17%) of non-Hispanic black children had asthma in 2009, the highest rate among racial/ethnic groups.15
  • The greatest rise in asthma rates was among black children (almost a 50% increase) from 2001 through 2009.15
  • Asthma cost the US about $3,300 per person with asthma each year from 2002 to 2007 in medical expenses, missed school and work days, and early deaths.15
  • Medical expenses associated with asthma increased from $48.6 billion in 2002 to $50.1 billion in 2007. About 2 in 5 (40%) uninsured people with asthma could not afford their prescription medicines and about 1 in 9 (11%) insured people with asthma could not afford their prescription medicines.15
  • More than half (59%) of children and one-third (33%) of adults who had an asthma attack missed school or work because of asthma in 2008. On average, in 2008 children missed 4 days of school and adults missed 5 days of work because of asthma.15
  • In 2008 less than half of people with asthma reported being taught how to avoid triggers. Almost half (48%) of adults who were taught how to avoid triggers did not follow most of this advice.15
  • The number of people diagnosed with asthma grew by 4.3 million from 2001 to 2009. From 2001 through 2009 asthma rates rose the most among black children, almost a 50% increase. Asthma was linked to 3,447 deaths (about 9 per day) in 2007. Asthma costs in the US grew from about $53 billion in 2002 to about $56 billion in 2007, about a 6% increase. Greater access to medical care is needed for the growing number of people with asthma.15
  • Asthma prevalence increased from 7.3% in 2001 to 8.4% in 2010, when 25.7 million persons had asthma.19
  • For the period 2008–2010, asthma prevalence was higher among children than adults, and among multiple-race, black, and American Indian or Alaska Native persons than white persons.19
  • From 2001 to 2009, health care visits for asthma per 100 persons with asthma declined in primary care settings, while asthma emergency department visit and hospitalization rates were stable.19
  • For the period 2007–2009, black persons had higher rates for asthma emergency department visits and hospitalizations per 100 persons with asthma than white persons, and a higher asthma death rate per 1,000 persons with asthma. Compared with adults, children had higher rates for asthma primary care and emergency department visits, similar hospitalization rates, and lower death rates.19

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  1. American Lung Association. Epidemiology & Statistics Unit, Research and Program Services. Trends in Asthma Morbidity and Mortality, November 2007.
  2. World Health Organization. Global surveillance, prevention and control of chronic respiratory diseases: a comprehensive approach, 2007.
  3. Akinbami, L. Asthma prevalence, health care use and mortality: United States 2003-05, CDC National Center for Health Statistics, 2006.
  4. American Lung Association, Epidemiology and Statistics Unit, Research and Program Services. Trends in Asthma Morbidity and Mortality. November 2007. (ALA age group analysis of NHIS through 2005.
  5. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Children: National Health Interview Survey, 2008.
  6. Akinbami LJ. The State of childhood asthma, United States, 1980–2005. Advance data from vital and health statistics; no 381, Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2006.
  7. Pitts SR, Niska RW, Xu J, Burt CW. National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey: 2006 emergency department summary. National health statistics reports; no 7. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2008.
  8. Arbes SJ, et al. House dust mite allergen in U.S. beds: Results from the first national survey of lead and allergens in housing. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2003; 111:408-414.
  9. Branum AM, Lukacs SL. Food allergy among U.S. children: Trends in prevalence and hospitalizations. NCHS data brief, no 10. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2008.
  10. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Adults: National Health Interview Survey, 2008 and Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Children: National Health Interview Survey, 2008.
  11. DeFrances CJ Cullen KA, Kozak LJ. National Hospital Discharge Survey: 2005 Annual Summary with Detailed Diagnosis and Procedure Data. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital Health Statistics 12 (165); 2007.
  12. American Lung Association, Epidemiology and Statistics Unit, Research and Program Services. Trends in Asthma Morbidity and Mortality. November 2007.
  13. National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Chartbook on Cardiovascular, Lung and Blood Diseases, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute of Health, 2009.
  14. Centers for Disease Control, 2011.
  15. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Vital Signs, May 2011.
  16. National Health Interview Survey, National Center for Health Statistics, CDC (1980-2009)
  17. World Allergy Organization (WAO) White Book on Allergy, 2011.
  18. National Hospital Discharge Survey, Mortality Component of the National Vital Statistics System, National Center for Health Statistics, CDC.
  19. Trends in Asthma Prevalence, Health Care, and Mortality in the United States, 2001-2010, CDC, May 2012.
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