Analyzing the Causes of Increasing Intensity and Frequency of Asthma Attack Among Intermediate Girl Students in the Province of Al-Ahssa Using Geographic Information System
Authors: Al Mulhim Mashael Abdulla , AlJenaid Sabah Saleh , Darwish Amro A. , Khadem Ghadeer , Hameed Nadir A. 
Published: June 2022

This study aims to analyze the reasons for the increase in the frequency and severity of asthma attacks among middle school students in the province of Al-Ahsa in Saudi Arabia in 2015. The methodology of the study focused on the distribution of a questionnaire to a sample of 91 students of public and private schools in the middle stage distributed in the six major cities of Al-Ahsa: Mubarraz, Eyes, Al-Jafr, Joatha, and Urbanism. School location data was collected using an iPhone, which uses the IOS operating system through mobile GIS software applications Environmental, urban, social, and behavioral metadata affecting the severity and frequency of asthma attacks were collected by distributing a questionnaire to the selected sample of female students. Data were organized and analyzed using GIS and statistical programs. School site maps were developed, and Geospatial Database was built in the GIS environment to collect, store and analyze study data. SPSS was used to analyze the survey questionnaire and determine the pattern of geographical distribution of the increasing number of female students who suffer from increased severity and recurrence of asthma and its relationship to the various factors adopted in this study. Spatial Statistics used spatial data to facilitate comparisons of the different distribution patterns of the studied phenomenon and used Spatial Autocorrelation to determine the distances that show the most visible spatial agglomeration in the sample studied, and to identify the hot spots (the most affected). Nearest Neighbor Analysis was also used to detect the pattern of severity distribution and frequency of asthma attacks in the six city districts. The results of the study showed the ease of using mobile GIS software to capture, collect and store school data. The number of students with asthma was 336, representing 50% of the study sample. The rate of infection among female students’ families increases to 65%. Analysis of the personal data of the studied sample of female students showed that the severity and frequency of asthma attacks in Saudi women are higher than in non-Saudi students. Also, most of them do not have a clear and accurate knowledge of the addresses of their residence, which was excluded from the analysis, which is a general and very important information at this age. The results of the questionnaire and spatial distribution maps of environmental, urban, social, and behavioral factors affecting the severity and frequency of asthma attacks indicated that the majority of cases are concentrated in the cities of Hofuf and Mubarraz. The number of injured students in the cities of Hofuf 197 students, and in Mubarraz 180 students. The results indicate that the highest frequency of asthma attacks occurs in the summer more than in the winter when the wind blows dust, as well as increased activity during playtimes, exposure to chemicals, and this leads to absent during the year between one day and five days. Sinusitis is the highest infection rate associated with female students. Allergies and heredity have a significant role in increasing the frequency and severity, and the percentage of those who hear their breathing increases to 51%, and most suffer from tightness in the chest, and the number of 325 students, equivalent to 64% of the sample, and 292 students use sprays 58% of the study sample.