Stigma and self-esteem in patients of bronchial asthma

Abstract

Asthma is a debilitating chronic disease that renders individuals physically as well as mentally sick. The perception of stigmatization further leads to inappropriate control of asthma resulting in a bidirectional relationship. A prospective, cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary care centre of semi urban area of north India during 2021-2022. Three hundred cases of bronchial asthma and 50 healthy controls were enrolled. The asthma control test (ACT) was used to evaluate the control of asthma. Stigma and self-esteem were measured with the use of 28 item self-stigma scale, Rosenberg self-esteem scale, and stigma-related social problem scale (SPSS). The impact of sociodemographic and clinical profiles on stigma and self-esteem was evaluated. Correlation of different scales with each other was done along with. The mean age of asthmatic patients was 47.41±15.507 years with 56% being females; 49.3% of patients were well controlled and 36.3% were partly controlled. Positive subscales of 28 item self-stigma scale, Rosenberg self-esteem scale and SSPS showed statistically significant differences between cases and controls (p<0.001). ACT significantly correlated with 28 item self-stigma scale, Rosenberg self-esteem scale and SSPS, and all three stigma and self-esteem scales correlated significantly with each other.