(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A new study shows many asthmatics discontinue taking medications shortly after being discharged from the hospital.

The research involved 52 inner-city, mostly black patients considered at high risk for asthma attacks. All were admitted to the hospital for an asthma attack and received intensive inpatient education about the need for asthma medications to control the disease. The patients were released with free prescriptions for either asthma inhalers or oral asthma medications.

Investigators used electronic medication monitors, self-reporting of medication use, and other measures to track medication use among the participants. Within a week’s time, most of the patients cut back on their medications, dropping to about 50 percent of the prescribed dose. The finding was particularly striking for those on the inhaled medications. Patients who cut back on their medications were significantly more likely to suffer worsening symptoms two weeks after hospital discharge.

The authors note asthma continues to be a major health problem and affects about 15 million to 20 million people in the United States. The disease results in about 465,000 hospitalizations and almost 5,000 deaths every year. Blacks are about two- to three-times more likely to be hospitalized or die from asthma than other populations.