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Susceptibility of asthmatic children to respiratory infection
1Laboratório de Epidemiologia e Estatística do Instituto Dante Pazzanese de Cardiologia, São Paulo, Brasil. julio@lee.dante.br
Insights
Wheezing diseases, like asthma, significantly increase pneumonia risk. Early detection and management of these conditions could reduce pneumonia incidence, especially in children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Respiratory Medicine
- Public Health
Background:
- Pneumonia is a common respiratory infection, particularly in children.
- The role of pre-existing respiratory conditions as risk factors for pneumonia requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if wheezing diseases are a significant risk factor for developing pneumonia.
- To identify potential public health interventions for reducing pneumonia incidence.
Main Methods:
- A case-control study involving 51 pneumonia cases and 102 controls (51 non-respiratory, 51 healthy).
- Data collected by senior pediatricians, including diagnoses of pneumonia and wheezing diseases.
- Radiological confirmation of pneumonia and logistic regression analysis to identify risk factors.
Main Results:
- Wheezing diseases, considered proxies for asthma, were a major risk factor for pneumonia (Odds Ratio = 7.07).
- Factors like bedroom crowding and low family income also showed associations with pneumonia risk.
- The study tentatively calculated that wheezing diseases account for 51.42% of pneumonia risk.
Conclusions:
- Asthma patients require vigilant monitoring for infections like pneumonia.
- Public health strategies should consider comprehensive care for wheezing illnesses to reduce pneumonia rates.
Objective:
A case-control study of patients with pneumonia was conducted to investigate whether wheezing diseases could be a risk factor.
Methods:
A random sample was taken from a general university hospital in S. Paulo City between March and August 1994 comprising 51 cases of pneumonia paired by age and sex to 51 non-respiratory controls and 51 healthy controls. Data collection was carried out by two senior paediatricians. Diagnoses of pneumonia and presence of wheezing disease were independently established by each paediatrician for both cases and controls. Pneumonia was radiologically confirmed and repeatability of information on wheezing diseases was measured. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify risk factors.
Results:
Wheezing diseases, interpreted as proxies of asthma, were found to be an important risk factor for pneumonia with an odds ratio of 7.07 (95% CI = 2.34-21.36), when the effects of bedroom crowding (odds ratio = 1.49 per person, 95% CI = 0.95-2.32) and of low family income (odds ratio = 5.59 against high family income, 95% CI = 1.38-22.63) were controlled. The risk of pneumonia attributable to wheezing diseases is tentatively calculated at 51.42%.
Conclusion:
It is concluded that at practice level asthmatics should deserve proper surveillance for infection and that at public health level pneumonia incidence could be reduced if current World Health Organisation's guidelines were reviewed as to include comprehensive care for this illness.