Asthma in late adolescents of Western Mexico: prevalence and associated factors

Given the number of changes that occur during late adolescence, it is possible that the behavior of asthma may also be different. The aim of our paper is to determine the prevalence of asthma in a population of late adolescents and its possible association with obesity, tobacco smoke exposure and family history of allergic disease.

In a cross-sectional, population-based analytical study design, we selected a stratified random sample of subjects aged 15 to 18. By modeling risk through logistic regression, we assessed the relationship between asthma and the following covariables: gender, obesity, excess weight, family history of allergic disease and tobacco smoke exposure.

1,600 subjects were included, and the following prevalences were identified: asthma 7.8%, obesity 9.6%, active smoking in the father 2 9.8%, active smoking in the mother 18.6% and active smoking habit in the study subjects 15.1%. In the final model, a significant association was found between asthma and the following variables: 1) asthma in the mother (adjusted OR [aOR]=2.95, 95% CI, 1.55 to 5.6); 2) history of allergic rhinitis (aOR=4.66, 95% CI, 2.63 to 8.25); and 3) male sex (aOR=1.48, 95% CI, 1.02 to 2.15). No association was seen with obesity or tobacco smoking of the parents.

Our results suggest that maternal history of asthma, personal history of allergic rhinitis and male sex are related with asthma late adolescence, while smoking and being overweight are not.