The burden of asthma in an inner-city area: A historical review 10 years after ISAAC

Abstract

Background: According to the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) methodology, in 2003, the prevalence of asthma symptoms in children 6-7 years old and adolescents 13-14 years old was 11.6% and 13.7%, respectively. Since then, the number of asthma cases has increased worldwide. The study was conducted in several districts in northern Mexico City to evaluate the prevalence of asthma in these age groups and examine possible risk factors. The data were compared to the 2003 results from the same area. Methods: This was a comparative cross-sectional study following the official Global Asthma Network (GAN) methodology. The parents or guardians of participants completed a questionnaire that explored demographics, asthma symptoms, diagnoses, and possible risk factors. Central tendency measurements were determined for statistical analysis and chi-squared distribution for possible risk factors. Results: A total of 2515 children aged 6-7 years and 3375 adolescents aged 13-14 years participated in the study. Compared to the ISAAC results, we found a greater prevalence of wheezing in both children (at some time in life, 19.2% vs. 27.1%; over the last year, 6.8% vs. 10.6%) and adolescents (at some time in life, 16.9% vs. 19.7%), and for children with an asthma diagnosis (4.5% vs. 5.1%). For both groups, the most common risk factor associated with wheezing was the presence of rhinitis symptoms. Conclusions: Asthma symptoms are highly prevalent in Mexico City, occurring in almost 20% of adolescents. Compared to a decade ago, there was a 7.9% increase in the prevalence of asthma symptoms in children. Almost half of the children and adolescents presenting with symptoms had experienced more than four episodes per year. However, less than 50% of children and adolescents with asthma symptoms had been diagnosed with this disorder, suggesting under-diagnosis.

Low prevalence of asthma in Mexican children and adults with a positive rtRT-PCR test for SARS-CoV-2: a cross-sectional study during the 2020 pandemic

“…9,10 Finally, 'Global Asthma Network Mexico' reported the most recent asthma prevalence in children aged 6-7 and 13-14 years: 5.8% and 7.5%, respectively. 11 This prevalence contradicted with the one observed in our study (3.7%).…”

Global Asthma Network Phase I study in Mexico: prevalence of asthma symptoms, risk factors and altitude associations—a cross-sectional study

“…Del-Rio-Navarro and collaborators observed that the prevalence of asthma symptoms increased by 3.8% in the group of school children and decreased one percent in the adolescents' group. 11 ISAAC Phase Three also reported several parental and child characteristics associated with asthma symptoms in school children. Such factors included parental smoking 12 ; use of paracetamol in the first year of life as well as dose-dependent current use of paracetamol 13 ; use of antibiotics in the first year of life 14 ; dietary habits 15 16 ; overweight and obesity 17 and sedentarism.…”

Asthma-associated risk for COVID-19 development

“… 14 , 15 , 16 The prevalence of asthma in the general population in Italy, Spain, and Ireland is 6.0%, 5.0%, and 7.0%, respectively 12 , 17 , 18 ( Fig 1 , A and B ). 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26

Fig 1 Asthma prevalence. A, Countries with high prevalence of asthma among COVID-19 comorbidities in comparison with asthma prevalence in the general population (high asthma-COVID-19 zone) are marked in red color.

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“…B, Asthma prevalence (%) among patients with COVID-19 in comparison with the general population in various countries. 12 , 17 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 …”