Individual allergens as risk factors for asthma and bronchial hyperresponsiveness in Chinese children / 中华儿科杂志

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE This study aimed to determine the relationship between individual allergens with current wheezing and bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) in schoolchildren from three chinese cities Beijing, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. METHODS Community-based random samples of 10-yr-old schoolchildren from the 3 cities were recruited for study using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) Phase II protocol. The subjects were studied by parental questionnaires (n = 10,902), skin-prick tests (n = 3478), and methacholine challenge tests (n = 608). RESULTS The highest prevalence rates of wheezing in the past 12 months (Beijing, 3.8%; Guangzhou, 3.4%; Hong Kong, 5.8%) and atopy (Beijing, 23.9%; Guangzhou, 30.8%; Hong Kong, 41.2%, defined as having <or= 1 positive skin-prick tests,) were seen in schoolchildren from Hong Kong. The highest prevalence rates of BHR (Beijing, 33.2%; Guangzhou, 45.8%; Hong Kong, 30.7%) were seen in schoolchildren from Guangzhou. Multivariate-logistic regression analyses revealed that sensitization to Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus [odds ratio ((OR)) = 4.48; 95% confidence interval ((CI)); 3.02-6.66], cat ((OR) 2.85; 95% (CI) 1.24-6.50), Dermatophagoides farinae (DF) ((OR) 2.41, 95% (CI) 1.65-3.51) and Mixed grass pollen ((OR) 2.85, 95% (CI) 1.24-6.50) were significantly associate with current wheezing atopy ((OR) 1.29, 95% (CI) 0.74-2.24), was not an independent risk factor for current wheezing in children from any of the three cities. Furthermore, atopy ((OR) 2.53, 95% (CI) 1.93-6.97) were significantly associated with BHR. CONCLUSION The authors confirmed that sensitization to house dust mite and cat was significantly associated with current wheezing and bronchial hyperresponsiveness in Chinese schoolchildren.