Risk factors for wheezing in infants born in Cuba
Background: Cuba is a unique country, and despite limited economic development, has an excellent health system. However, the prevalence of asthma symptoms in children in Havana, Cuba, is unusually high. Aim: As early life exposures are critical to the aetiology of asthma, we have studied environ...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
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Oxford University Press
2013
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2940/ |
| _version_ | 1848790913923416064 |
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| author | Venero-Fernandez, S.J. Suarez-Medina, R. Mora-Faife, E.C. Garcia-Garcia, G. Valle-Infante, I. Gomez-Marrero, L. Abreu-Suarez, G. Gonzalez-Valdez, J. Dania Fabro-Ortiz, D. Fundora-Hernandez, H. Venn, A. Britton, J. Fogarty, Andrew W. |
| author_facet | Venero-Fernandez, S.J. Suarez-Medina, R. Mora-Faife, E.C. Garcia-Garcia, G. Valle-Infante, I. Gomez-Marrero, L. Abreu-Suarez, G. Gonzalez-Valdez, J. Dania Fabro-Ortiz, D. Fundora-Hernandez, H. Venn, A. Britton, J. Fogarty, Andrew W. |
| author_sort | Venero-Fernandez, S.J. |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Background: Cuba is a unique country, and despite limited economic development, has an excellent health system. However, the prevalence of asthma symptoms in children in Havana, Cuba, is unusually high.
Aim: As early life exposures are critical to the aetiology of asthma, we have studied environmental influences on the risk of wheezing in Cuban infants.
Design: Cross-sectional study.
Methods: A random sample of 2032 children aged 12–15 months living in Havana was selected for inclusion in the cohort. Data were collected using questionnaires administered by researchers.
Results: Of 2032 infants invited to participate, 1956 (96%) infants provided data. The prevalence of any wheeze was 45%, severe wheeze requiring use of emergency services was 30% and recurrent wheeze on three or more occasions was 20%. The largest adjusted risk factors for any wheeze were presence of eczema [odds ratio (OR) 2.09; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.48–2.94], family history of asthma (OR 2.05; 95% CI 1.60–2.62), poor ventilation in the house (OR 1.99; 95% CI 1.48–2.67), attendance at nursery (OR 1.78; 95% CI 1.24–2.57), male sex (OR1.52; 95% CI 1.19–1.96) and the number of smokers in the house (P < 0.03 for trend), OR 1.64 (95% CI 1.17–2.31) for three or more smokers in the house compared to no smokers in the household.
Conclusion: We have identified several risk factors for any wheeze in young infants living in modern day Cuba. As the prevalence of smoking in the house is high (51%), intervention studies are required to determine effective strategies to improve infant health. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:20:10Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-2940 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:20:10Z |
| publishDate | 2013 |
| publisher | Oxford University Press |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-29402020-05-04T16:39:58Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2940/ Risk factors for wheezing in infants born in Cuba Venero-Fernandez, S.J. Suarez-Medina, R. Mora-Faife, E.C. Garcia-Garcia, G. Valle-Infante, I. Gomez-Marrero, L. Abreu-Suarez, G. Gonzalez-Valdez, J. Dania Fabro-Ortiz, D. Fundora-Hernandez, H. Venn, A. Britton, J. Fogarty, Andrew W. Background: Cuba is a unique country, and despite limited economic development, has an excellent health system. However, the prevalence of asthma symptoms in children in Havana, Cuba, is unusually high. Aim: As early life exposures are critical to the aetiology of asthma, we have studied environmental influences on the risk of wheezing in Cuban infants. Design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: A random sample of 2032 children aged 12–15 months living in Havana was selected for inclusion in the cohort. Data were collected using questionnaires administered by researchers. Results: Of 2032 infants invited to participate, 1956 (96%) infants provided data. The prevalence of any wheeze was 45%, severe wheeze requiring use of emergency services was 30% and recurrent wheeze on three or more occasions was 20%. The largest adjusted risk factors for any wheeze were presence of eczema [odds ratio (OR) 2.09; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.48–2.94], family history of asthma (OR 2.05; 95% CI 1.60–2.62), poor ventilation in the house (OR 1.99; 95% CI 1.48–2.67), attendance at nursery (OR 1.78; 95% CI 1.24–2.57), male sex (OR1.52; 95% CI 1.19–1.96) and the number of smokers in the house (P < 0.03 for trend), OR 1.64 (95% CI 1.17–2.31) for three or more smokers in the house compared to no smokers in the household. Conclusion: We have identified several risk factors for any wheeze in young infants living in modern day Cuba. As the prevalence of smoking in the house is high (51%), intervention studies are required to determine effective strategies to improve infant health. Oxford University Press 2013-11-11 Article PeerReviewed Venero-Fernandez, S.J., Suarez-Medina, R., Mora-Faife, E.C., Garcia-Garcia, G., Valle-Infante, I., Gomez-Marrero, L., Abreu-Suarez, G., Gonzalez-Valdez, J., Dania Fabro-Ortiz, D., Fundora-Hernandez, H., Venn, A., Britton, J. and Fogarty, Andrew W. (2013) Risk factors for wheezing in infants born in Cuba. QJM: An International Journal of Medicine, 106 (11). pp. 1023-1029. ISSN 1460-2725 http://qjmed.oxfordjournals.org/content/106/11/1023.full doi:10.1093/qjmed/hct143 doi:10.1093/qjmed/hct143 |
| spellingShingle | Venero-Fernandez, S.J. Suarez-Medina, R. Mora-Faife, E.C. Garcia-Garcia, G. Valle-Infante, I. Gomez-Marrero, L. Abreu-Suarez, G. Gonzalez-Valdez, J. Dania Fabro-Ortiz, D. Fundora-Hernandez, H. Venn, A. Britton, J. Fogarty, Andrew W. Risk factors for wheezing in infants born in Cuba |
| title | Risk factors for wheezing in infants born in Cuba |
| title_full | Risk factors for wheezing in infants born in Cuba |
| title_fullStr | Risk factors for wheezing in infants born in Cuba |
| title_full_unstemmed | Risk factors for wheezing in infants born in Cuba |
| title_short | Risk factors for wheezing in infants born in Cuba |
| title_sort | risk factors for wheezing in infants born in cuba |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2940/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2940/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2940/ |