The Prevalence of Allergic Diseases in Children Living In Jeju / 소아알레르기및호흡기학회지

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: We investigated the prevalence of allergic diseases in preschoolers and children attending elementary, middle and high schools in Seogwipo city, Jeju, South Korea. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey in November 2008 was conducted, using questionnaires, translated in Korean, from the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood group. All the attendees, 29,606, in 136 nurseries and kindergartens, 47 elementary schools, 15 middle schools and 10 high schools in Seogwipo city were surveyed in this study. RESULTS: Of the 25,312 (85.5%) questionnaires retrieved, 25,024 were appropriately completed and analyzed. For asthma, the prevalence of "wheeze, last 12 months" was 15.4% for the preschool children, 6.4% for the elementary school students, 5.3% for the middle school students and 5.8% for the high school students. The prevalence of "allergic rhinitis, last 12 months" was 23.9%, 30.0%, 31.4% and 34.2%, respectively. The prevalence of "atopic dermatitis, last 12 months" was 19.0%, 17.4%, 12.3% and 11.4%, respectively. The prevalence of "allergic conjunctivitis, last 12 months" was 8.5%, 12.3%, 20.3% and 23.4%, respectively. The prevalence of "food allergy, last 12 months" was 5.4%, 4.2%, 4.2% and 5.1%, respectively. The prevalence of "drug allergy, last 12 months" was 0.7%, 0.3%, 0.6%, and 0.8% for each group. CONCLUSION: In Seogwipo city, the prevalence of asthma and atopic dermatitis decreases with age. However, allergic rhinitis and allergic conjunctivitis are increasing by age. The prevalence of food allergy and drug allergy showed no difference by age.