OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of asthma, wheezing, hay fever, and eczema among primary school children aged 6-13 years in United Arab Emirates (UAE). DESIGN: A cross-sectional study on school children was performed using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) questionnaires. SETTING: Government primary school children in seven Emirates, in UAE. SUBJECTS: Subjects were selected by a multi-stage stratified sampling design. 4200 children targeted for this study, but only 3200 children aged 6-13 years were agreed to participate and responded to the study. The overall response rate was 69.8%. RESULTS: The prevalence of physician diagnosed asthma was 13%, in addition, the wheeze by history was 15.6%. Furthermore, the prevalence of nocturnal cough was 21%. On the other hand, the prevalence of eczema was 11% and hay fever was 14.9%. Parental asthma but not parental atopy was associated with an increased risk of asthma and wheezing in children. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of asthma and wheezing in UAE is consistent with that in neighbouring Gulf countries.
OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of asthma, wheezing, hay fever, and eczema among primary school children aged 6-13 years in United Arab Emirates (UAE). DESIGN: A cross-sectional study on school children was performed using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) questionnaires. SETTING: Government primary school children in seven Emirates, in UAE. SUBJECTS: Subjects were selected by a multi-stage stratified sampling design. 4200 children targeted for this study, but only 3200 children aged 6-13 years were agreed to participate and responded to the study. The overall response rate was 69.8%. RESULTS: The prevalence of physician diagnosed asthma was 13%, in addition, the wheeze by history was 15.6%. Furthermore, the prevalence of nocturnal cough was 21%. On the other hand, the prevalence of eczema was 11% and hay fever was 14.9%. Parental asthma but not parental atopy was associated with an increased risk of asthma and wheezing in children. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of asthma and wheezing in UAE is consistent with that in neighbouring Gulf countries.
Authors: Bassam H Mahboub; Suleiman Al-Hammadi; Mohamed Rafique; Nabil Sulaiman; Ruby Pawankar; Abdulla I Al Redha; Atul C Mehta Journal: BMC Pulm Med Date: 2012-02-16 Impact factor: 3.317