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Recurrent respiratory tract infections during the first 3 years of life and atopy at school age
1Department of Population Health Sciences, National Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway.
Insights
Early childhood respiratory infections appear to lower the risk of developing atopy in children with asthma. This study explored the link between early infections and later atopic conditions.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Allergy and Immunology
- Epidemiology
- Respiratory Medicine
Background:
- Investigated the hypothesis that infections may protect against atopy.
- Examined the association between early-life infections and atopy development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To estimate the association between recurrent respiratory tract infections in the first three years of life and atopy at school age.
- To determine if early infections influence the risk of developing atopy.
Main Methods:
- Survey data from three Norwegian regions.
- Children classified into asthma, wheeze, or no respiratory symptoms groups.
- Skin prick test (SPT) used to determine atopy in a sample of 502 children.
- Retrospective parental reports of respiratory infections were the exposure variable.
Main Results:
- Infections showed a negative association with atopy in children with asthma (cOR=0.3) and wheeze (cOR=0.4).
- This negative association persisted in children with asthma after adjusting for confounders (aOR=0.3).
- No association was found between the number of siblings and atopy.
Conclusions:
- Recurrent respiratory tract infections in early childhood are negatively associated with atopy in school-aged children with asthma.
- Findings suggest a potential protective role of early infections against atopy in this population.
Background:
The hypothesis that infections reduce the risk of atopy was investigated by estimating the association between recurrent respiratory tract infections during the first 3 years of life and atopy at school age.
Methods:
According to surveys in three different areas of Norway, children were classified into three groups: asthma, wheeze without asthma (wheeze), and no asthma/no wheeze. The skin prick test (SPT) was conducted on a stratified random sample of children (n = 502). The outcome was at least one positive SPT. The exposure variable was retrospective parental report of respiratory tract infections during the first 3 years of life.
Results:
Infections were negatively associated with atopy, crude odds ratio (cOR) = 0.3, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.1-0.7, in the asthma group. A similar association was present in children with wheeze cOR = 0.4 (95% CI 0.1-1.2). The number of siblings was not associated with atopy in any group. Infections remained negatively associated with atopy in children with asthma, aOR = 0.3 (95% CI 0.1-0.7), in a logistic regression model adjusting for confounding factors. A similar pattern was present in the wheeze group.
Conclusions:
Recurrent respiratory tract infections during the first 3 years of life are negatively associated with atopy at school age in children with asthma.