Chronic airway diseases in adult life and childhood infections

Background: Respiratory disorders in childhood may predispose to pulmonary disease in late adult life. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between their effects in adult life and the characteristics of the respiratory system in childhood. Methods: A total of 10,224 parents and grandparents of students from 14 randomly selected primary schools in the city center were asked to answer questionnaires given to their children. 9,853 of 10,224 persons (the overall response rate was 96.3%) were eligible for analysis. In the questionnaire subjects were asked about respiratory system-related symptoms and characteristics. Results: Chronic cough [14.3 vs. 4.7%, OR 3.4 (2.6–4.4), p < 0.001], chronic bronchitis [35.3 vs. 11.8%, OR 4.0 (3.4–4.8), p < 0.001] and asthma [34.2 vs. 5.1%, OR 9.6 (8.0–11.5), p < 0.001] in the childhood respiratory infection group were more common than in the control group. Childhood respiratory infections were associated with an increased risk of asthma (OR 5.6, p < 0.001), chronic bronchitis (OR 2.3, p < 0.001) and chronic cough (OR 1.5, p < 0.001), after adjusting for possible confounding factors. In addition, the presence of dampness or visible mould, wall-to-wall carpets, pets at home and parents’ smoking during childhood were associated with an increased risk of frequent childhood respiratory infections. Conclusion: These results indicated that frequentrespiratory infections during childhood might play an important role in the occurrence of chronic airway diseases in adult life. The removing of risk factors for frequent childhood respiratory infections may reduce the subsequent risk of chronic airway disease in late adult life.