Asthma and allergies among children in West and East Germany: a comparison between Munster and Greifswald using the ISAAC phase I protocol. International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood

Abstract

The study aim was to compare the prevalence of asthma, rhinitis and eczema in children living in Munster, western Germany, and Greifswald, eastern Germany, and to investigate associations of several characteristics and exposures with atopic disease symptoms. In 1994 and 1995, questionnaire information was gathered on 5-8 yr old children (n=3,741 in Munster and n=2,857 in Greifswald) and 12-15 yr olds (n=4,003 and n= 3,153, respectively) using the phase I protocol of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC). The 12 month period prevalences of reported atopic disease symptoms in 5-8 yr olds were generally higher in Munster than in Greifswald, whereas only a few prevalence differences were observed in 12-15 yr olds. In both age groups the reported lifetime prevalences of asthma, hay fever and eczema were lower in Greifswald. Indoor exposures such as wood or coal heating and feather bedding were negatively associated with symptoms, whereas exposures such as truck traffic in a residential street or active smoking were positively associated with symptoms. Wood or coal heating could partly explain the prevalence difference of allergic rhinitis symptoms among 5-8 yr olds between Munster and Greifswald. The findings provide additional evidence for a role of several characteristics and exposures as potential determinants of asthma and allergies in children.

Atopic eczema in early childhood could be protective against Type 1 diabetes

“…Therefore, selection bias, recall bias and misclassification could have affected the observed associations. However, proportions of control children with a history of atopic disorders were within the range of previous reports on young German children relating to either parent-reported physician diagnosed atopic disorders [23] or to parent-reported atopic disorders [22] corresponding to our study. In addition, results have been adjusted for socio-economic status, which is known to be associated with both study participation rates and atopic disorders [24,25].…”

“…In contrast, asthma and hay fever were not associated with the risk of diabetes. However, asthma and hay fever are most common beyond pre-school age [16,22]. Thus, focusing on pre-school children our study might not be appropriate to provide conclusive evidence on the association of these conditions with the risk of diabetes.…”

Variação na prevalência de asma e atopia em um grupo de escolares de Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul

“…Várias teorias têm sido apontadas como justificativas, mas a explicação mais conclusiva para esse fenômeno ainda não foi definida (1)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10) . Fatores genéticos e ambientais parecem estar envolvidos, mas cada vez mais os últimos têm aparecido como os principais implicados (3,4,(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)(19) . Em algumas regiões, esse aumento de prevalência tem sido particularmente mais evidente do que em outras, como acontece entre determinados grupos etários da raça maori, na Nova Zelândia.…”

“…Já na Alemanha, um estudo avaliando crianças e adolescentes de duas cidades situadas no Oeste e no Leste encontrou prevalência maior de asmáticos na região ocidental do país. Levando em consideração o fato de que os habitantes de ambas as cidades possuem a mesma etnia, restam os fatores ambientais como maiores justificativas para as diferenças identificadas (14) . Esse fenômeno também foi observado por Bråbäck et al em um estudo clássico desenvolvido entre 1991 e 1992, avaliando as diferentes prevalências de asma entre crianças suecas residentes em zona urbana e rural, respectivamente, e um terceiro grupo de crianças polonesas, também provenientes de uma área urbana de seu país.…”

Determinants of asthma among children and adolescents in Germany

“…In der "International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood I (ISAAC I)" lag die Asthmapräva-lenz in den frühen 1990er-Jahren bei Kindern aus den 155 Untersuchungszentren in 55 Ländern bei 10,2% für die Sechs-bis Siebenjährigen und bei 11,3% für die 13-bis 14-Jährigen, wobei erhebliche Unterschiede zwischen verschiedenen Ländern beobachtet wurden [3]. In den deutschen ISAAC-Zentren Münster und Greifswald lag die Lebenszeitprävalenz damals im Durchschnitt bei 3,6% für die Sechs-bis Siebenjährigen und bei 5,7% für die 13-bis 14-Jährigen [4]. In den westlichen Län-dern hat die Prävalenz von Asthma bronchiale und Asthmasymptomen bis in die 1990er-Jahre bei Kindern und jungen Erwachsenen kontinuierlich zugenommen.…”