Most asthma-related emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalizations for asthma are preventable. Our purpose was to develop a grounded theory to guide interventions to reduce unnecessary hospitalizations and ED visits.

DESIGN AND METHODS: Grounded theory inquiry guided interviews of 20 participants, including 13 parents and 7 children.

RESULTS: Living on the edge of asthma was the emergent theory. Categories included: balancing, losing control, seeking control, and transforming.
PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: The theory provides the means for nurses to understand the dynamic process that families undergo in trying to prevent and then deal with and learn from an acute asthma attack requiring hospitalization or an ED visit.