RESUMEN
Objective To investigate the incidence and risk factors of chronic cough in children aged 6-14 years. Methods The incidence of chronic cough in children aged 6-14 years in Qinhuangdao city was investigated by questionnaire. Results A total of 4 000 questionnaires were distributed, 3 785 of them were effectively recovered, with the recovery rate of 94.6%. The incidence of chronic cough in children aged 6-14 was 5.1% (194/3 785). The prevalence rates of boys and girls were 5.4% (101/1 859) and 4.8% (93/1 926), respectively, with no significant difference (χ2=0.641，P=0.873). The incidence rate of children in industrial town area 6.7% (64/955) was significantly higher than that in urban area 4.4% (85/1 917) and agricultural town 4.9% (45/913) (χ2=55.082，P=0.000). The risk factors showed that chronic cough was associated with long-term allergen exposure, allergic constitution, asthma, rhinitis, reflux esophagitis and other nasopharynx diseases (χ2=17.833，43.370，194.466，27.773，101.92，11.268，P =0.000). Regression model analysis showed that asthma, rhinitis and allergen long-term exposure were independent risk factors of chronic cough (Wald=15.352，10.174，12.625，12.659，P =0.000). Conclusion The incidence rate of children in industrial town is higher in Qinhuangdao City than those in other urban areas, 6~14 years old children. Asthma, rhinitis and allergen exposure are the main causes of chronic cough.