Many children will have health problems during infancy and childhood, but for most children these problems are mild, they come and go, and they do not interfere with their daily life and development.[1] For some children, however, chronic health conditions affect everyday life throughout childhood. Chronic diseases can affect a child's ability to perform activities and may require hospitalization and/or extensive medical care.
Hospitalizations for asthma among children and youth |
About the MeasureAsthma is a disease of the airways that causes coughing, shortness of breath, chest tightness and wheezing.[2] If not properly managed, asthma can be life threatening. Data on this measure comes from Intellihealth, an online database managed by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. This rate represents the number of hospitalizations for asthma among children and youth living in Wellington, Dufferin and Guelph, up to age 18, during a given year, expressed per 10,000. Key FindingsIn 2017, children from birth to six had the highest rate of hospitalization for asthma (20.23 per 10,000) compared to children aged seven to 13 (3.81 per 10,000) and youth aged 14 to 18 (1.69 per 10,000). Overall, the rates of hospitalization for asthma have decreased since 2014. This data can be found in the downloadable Excel file at the bottom of this page.
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Source: IntelliHealth, extracted November 2, 2018. Prepared by Health Analytics Team, Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health.
LimitationsHospitalization data will not capture those treated and released from emergency departments, those treated in doctors' offices or clinics, or those who did not seek treatment in hospital. It only provides a crude measure of the prevalence of asthma and is influenced by the availability of services. Finally, hospitalization data may include multiple admissions for a single person.
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Hospitalizations for diabetes among children and youth |
About the MeasureIn Ontario, approximately 95% of children and youth with diabetes have type 1 diabetes.[3] Although still not common among children and youth, type 2 diabetes is on the rise in this population globally.[4] Diabetes can lead to many different health complications and it can be life threatening. Data on this measure comes from Intellihealth, an online database managed by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. This rate represents the number of hospitalizations for diabetes among children and youth living in Wellington, Dufferin and Guelph, from birth to 18 years of age, during a given year, expressed per 10,000. Diabetes hospitalization rates for children and youth include all types of diabetes and can include multiple hospitalizations for the same individual. Key FindingsDespite variation between years, children birth to six consistently have the lowest rates of hospitalizations for diabetes. In 2017, children birth to six had the lowest rate of hospitalization for diabetes (1.72 per 10,000) compared to children aged seven to 13 (6.34 per 10,000) and youth aged 14 to 18 (6.77 per 10, 000). This data can be found in the downloadable Excel file at the bottom of this page.
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Source: IntelliHealth, extracted November 2, 2018. Prepared by Health Analytics Team, Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health.
LimitationsIt is not possible to distinguish between type 1 and type 2 diabetes through hospitalization data. Hospitalization data will not capture those treated and released from emergency departments, those treated in doctors' offices or clinics, or those who did not seek treatment in hospital. It only provides a crude measure of the prevalence of diabetes, and is influenced by the availability of services. Finally, hospitalization data may include multiple admissions for a single person.
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[1] World Health Organization. (2017). Noncommunicable diseases. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization. Available at: http://www.who.int/topics/noncommunicable_diseases/en/
[2] Chen, Y., Johansen, H., Thillaiampalam, S., & Sambell, C. (2005). Asthma. (Catalogue no. 82-003). Ottawa, ON: Statistics Canada 16(2), 43. Available at: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/studies-etudes/82-003/archive/2005/7790-eng.pdf
[3] Shulman, R.S., Miller, F.A., Stukel, T.A., Daneman, D., & Guttmann, A. (2016). Resources and population served: a description of the Ontario Paediatric Diabetes Network. CMAJ Open, 4(2).
[4] Public Health Agency of Canada. (2011). Diabetes in Canada: Facts and figures from a public health perspective. Ottawa, ON: Public Health Agency of Canada. Available at: http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/cd-mc/publications/diabetes-diabete/facts-figures-faits-chiffres-2011/chap5-eng.php#endnote1