Evaluation of the Relapse Rate One Month After Discharge From Emergency Department for Asthmatic Patients Given a Strict Formalized Follow up Protocol. Multicenter, Prospective, Cluster-randomized

For over ten years, the French group ASUR (ASthme aux URgences) has studied the asthmatic disease. The first epidemiological study enrolling 3.772 patients, in 39 emergency services, showed that the treatment protocols during the acute asthma attacks were not homogeneous and that oral corticosteroids were prescribed in only 50% of the cases. The second major French study in the emergency department by the same group enrolled 3.049 patients. The results showed that 38% of patients have a new acute asthma relapse in the month following their consultation in the emergency department. In the same study, a multivariate analysis of predictors of relapse showed that there are controllable factors (absence of written recommendations at discharge, only 50% of prescriptions for oral corticosteroids at discharge from the emergency department, limited follow-up by a general practitioner (GP) or pneumologist ...).

The emergency physician has a responsibility in educating the patient during the period between an acute asthma attack and return to the stability of long term therapy. To date, the impact of patient education on the rate of further consultations in the emergency department has not been proven, although it seems to be a positive trend on its effect. In France, half of the patients coming to the emergency department for asthma attack will not be hospitalized. More than a third will return to the ED within the first 30 days for a new attack. The impact of post-interventional education on relapse should be explored. A first major study on a strict formalized protocol designed to reduce the relapse rate is essential and could allow a major improvement.

Our main objective is to assess the impact of a strict formalized protocol of care of asthmatic patients discharged from the Emergency Department on the recurrence rate of asthma attacks, one month after an asthma attack.

The expected benefit for the patient is the short-term reduction of relapse after asthma exacerbations, thus avoiding the problems of readmission. The strict formalized discharge protocol would also improve education in terms of self-medication in this gray zone of post-therapeutic monitoring. The benefit is even more important in terms of public health due to the important prevalence of asthma in the world and in our country. The advantage of this protocol is to strengthen the links between the hospital and the GPs. Education of asthmatic patients is essential in reducing morbidity. Thus, the potential benefits of this protocol are: reducing the cost of health and re-hospitalization, improved education of asthma patients, strengthening their link with the required GP, decreased absenteeism usually frequent in this type of disease in the workplace.