City parks neighbourhood and preschool children asthma in the city of Kaunas

Background There is some evidence that access to urban green spaces is associated with a better health; however, the available evidence on the impact of green spaces on children asthma is scarce. Aims We examined the association between residence distance from city parks and preschool children asthma. Methods This study included 536 children 4-5 year’s old Kaunas city residents. Doctor’s diagnose and symptoms of allergic diseases were assessed by ISAAC-based questionnaires. We used a geographic information system (GIS) to assess the environmental exposures. According to the distance from the residents’ homes of each respondent to the nearest park, we determined three children exposure groups: residing within 300 m (referent group), 300-1000 m and more than 1000 m. The associations between distance from parks and prevalence of asthma were analysed by logistic regression models with and without adjustment for maternal education, age, passive smoking, body mass index, parental and other family members asthma...