Asthma in patients with atopic dermatitis.

OBJECTIVE: This cross-sectional study was designed to estimate the frequency of asthma in patients with atopic dermatitis (AD), and its related factors. METHODS: The study population consisted of 236 patients with AD who were referred to Children Medical Center in 1997-2002 and their diagnosis was based on Hanifin & Rajka criteria. Severity of AD was categorized based on Severity Scoring of Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) index. Asthma was diagnosed with medical history and clinical examination (three or more episodes of wheezing and/or dyspnea and/or cough after 1 year old). The patients were divided in two groups according to having or not having asthma. RESULTS: The mean age of patients with AD was 38.67+/-2.68 month and the mean age at onset of asthma was 20+/-2.5 month. The frequency of asthma in AD patients was 27.5%. The mean of SCORAD in nonasthmatic patients was 52.27 +/- 2.52 and in asthmatic patients was 56.2+/- 4.2 (P= 0.4). The mean of duration of breastfeeding in asthmatic patients was 12.2+/-1.6 month and in non-asthmatic patients was 11.16+/-6.3 month (P = 0.87). There was no significant difference between asthmatic patients and others in serum IgE levels (P = 0.65) and blood eosinophil count. (P = 0.49). CONCLUSION: These results confirmed that development of asthma in patients with AD is more than normal population and AD can be a significant predisposing factor to developing asthma but the causative factors are not clear.

Obesity and related risk factors.

OBJECTIVE: To study the prevalence of overweight and obesity among Iranian schoolgirls and to identify risk factors which lead to obesity. METHOD: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2002 and a sample of 1800 female students between 7-12 years old was obtained using a multistage cluster sampling method from Tehran. Height and weight were measured and related socio-economic information was collected. RESULTS: The overall percent of overweight and obesity was 13.3% and 7.7% respectively. BMI (Body Mass Index) was directly and significantly(r=+0.28, P< 0.001) correlated with increasing age. Physical activity was significantly different between obese and non-obese children. (P=0.03) Also, economical factors such as the type of school (private&public) were different in these children. (P=0.03) The statistical analysis of the data revealed a significant and inverse correlation(r=-0.03, P=0.04) between maternal education and occurrence of overweight and obesity in children. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of overweight and obesity in young Iranian girls was high. Advanced age, lack of physical inactivity, low economical factors and maternal educational status could be risk factors for obesity in children.