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Asthma and hayfever in Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal children living in non‐remote rural towns
Author(s) -
Downs Sara H,
Marks Guy B,
Belosouva Elena G,
Peat Jennifer K
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2001.tb143503.x
Subject(s) - wheeze , asthma , medicine , demography , atopy , indigenous , odds ratio , bronchitis , pediatrics , risk factor , chronic bronchitis , residence , odds , logistic regression , sociology , ecology , biology
ABSTRACT Objective To compare the prevalence and risk factors for wheeze, asthma diagnosis and hayfever in Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal children living in rural towns in Australia. Design and setting Cross‐sectional study in two towns in rural NSW, Australia, 1997. Participants Primary school children (aged 7–12 years) classified by their parents as being of Aboriginal ( n = 158) or of non‐Aboriginal ( n = 1282) origin. Main outcome measures Atopy measured by skinprick tests and respiratory symptoms measured by parent‐completed questionnaire. Results Aboriginal children were less likely to be atopic (36.2% v 45.6%; 95% CI for the difference, ‐17.6 to ‐1.3) and to have hayfever (23.3% v 35.2%; 95% CI for the difference, ‐19.1 to ‐4.6) than non‐Aboriginal children, but were equally likely to have had wheeze (31.0% v 27.3%) and asthma (39.4% v 39.3%). Among Aboriginal children, having had bronchitis before age two was a strong risk factor for wheeze (adjusted odds ratio (aOR), 9.3; 95% CI, 2.8–30.2) and asthma (aOR, 19.3; 95% CI, 4.7–79.3) and having a parent with hayfever was a strong risk factor for hayfever (aOR, 17.9; 95% CI, 3.5–90.8), but these risk factors were weaker among non‐Aboriginal children. Conclusions Asthma and wheeze are equally prevalent in Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal children living in the same towns, but appear to have a different aetiology.