Abstract
For establishing asthma prevalence among Estonian schoolchildren 753 10-12 years old children in Tallinn (Tln) and 766 in Tartu (Ta) were investigated in a cross-sectional study, including parental questionnaires, skin prick tests (SPT), serial PEF-measurements and provocation tests with metacholine and exercise tests.
Allergic respiratory symptoms were less common among Estonian children than among children in West- and North-European countries. 5.1% of children in Tln and 4.1% in Ta had nocturnal cough without signs of cold; 9.4% of children in Tln and 5.8 in Ta had wheezing in the chest during cold, physical exertion or in contact with animals. The corresponding figure in Sundsvall in Central-Sweden was 13.1%. 13% of children in Tln and 8.3% in Ta had at least one positive SPT (in Urban Sundsvall – 35.3%). 10% had common cold > 6 times a year and coughing bouts for more than 2 weeks after a common cold - respectively 18.8% in Tln and 13.8% in Ta.
Estonian schoolchildren have a low prevalence of atopic sensitization but symptoms of respiratory infections and hyperreactivity are frequent.
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Julge, K., Vasar, M., Riikjärv, M. et al. 316 RESPIRATORY SYMPTOMS AND ATOPIC SENSITIZATION AMONG ESTONIAN 10–12 YEARS OLD CHILDREN. Pediatr Res 36, 55 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199407000-00316
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199407000-00316