Disease patterns of outpatient visits by Japanese expatriate children in Thailand

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Health
• Environmental Medicine
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Understanding health conditions in expatriate children is crucial for targeted healthcare.
• Previous research has not fully elucidated the specific health challenges faced by Japanese children living in Thailand.
• Environmental factors are known to influence childhood diseases, including respiratory and infectious conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate and compare the health-related conditions of Japanese expatriate children in Thailand with those in Japan.
• To identify prevalent diseases and differences in disease patterns between the two groups.
• To explore the potential impact of living environments on childhood health outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of outpatient clinic records for 2141 Japanese children at Bangkok Hospital (2005-2006).
• Comparison with national patient survey data from Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (2005, n=575,400).
• Categorization of diseases using the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10).

Main Results:

• Diseases of the respiratory system (ICD-10 Chapter X) were the most frequent category in both Thailand and Japan.
• In Thailand, 'certain infectious and parasitic diseases' (Chapter I) were the second most frequent, unlike in Japan.
• Thai children had frequent 'acute upper respiratory infections' and infrequent asthma, while Japanese children showed the opposite trend.

Conclusions:

• Children in Japan contract asthma more frequently than infectious diseases, whereas Thai children exhibit the reverse pattern.
• Findings support the hygiene hypothesis, suggesting that infections may protect against the development of allergic diseases like asthma.
• Different living environments significantly impact the health profiles of children with similar genetic backgrounds.