This study determines factors associated with use of emergency departments by African American, Latino, and White children aged 1-11 years in California.

The author conducted a secondary analysis of parental reports of emergency department use by children with asthma (defined as doctor's diagnosis of asthma). An overall sample of 1313 children with asthma was identified from the California Health Interview Survey, 2001.

Findings: African American children were 1.82 times and Latino children were 1.23 times more likely than white children to visit the emergency department for asthma symptoms. Severity of symptoms, having private health insurance, being from a single-family home, and childhood disability factors were also associated with emergency department use.

Health insurance type, being from a single-parent home, and asthma severity and disability predict the use of emergency department use for African American, Latino, and white children with asthma in California.