NATION IN BRIEF : GEORGIA : Asthma Death Rate Up More Than 30%

The nation’s death rate from asthma has increased by more than 30% in seven years, and nearly 10 million Americans are now affected by the chronic disease characterized by difficulty in breathing, the national Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta reported. Officials said a number of factors--including exposure to infections and other “triggers” for bronchial constriction, health-care factors and air quality--may contribute to the increase. Between 1980 and 1987, the death rate from asthma in the United States rose from 1.3 per 100,000 population to 1.7, according to the CDC.