Personal and early life factors associated with new-onset asthma, remission, and persistence of asthma in a 2-year follow-up of schoolchildren.

Oluwole ORennie DCAfanasieva ALawson JA

 2020 Jan 6:1-9. doi: 10.1080/02770903.2019.1709865

Children aged 5-14 years in Canada participated in a cross-sectional study in 2013. In 2015, those who gave consent in 2013 were re-contacted creating a prospective cohort. Data were collected using questionnaires in both years. Among those without asthma in 2013 (n = 245), the incidence of new-onset asthma in 2015 was 7.2%. Among those with asthma in 2013 (n = 79), 47.1% had remission and 52.9% had persistent asthma in 2015. The results were that parental history of asthma (adjusted odds ratio (aOR): 4.99; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.88-28.27), early life respiratory infection (aOR: 1.92; 95%CI: 1.47-7.88), early life allergy [aOR: 6.39; 95%CI: 1.34-30.58) and early life infection (aOR: 4.99; 95%CI: 1.19-20.93) were associated with new onset asthma.The authors conclude that not only might these four factors influence the onset of childhood asthma but may also be associated with asthma persistence.