BMJ 2001;322:390-395 ( 17 February )

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Early childhood infectious diseases and the development of asthma up to school age: a birth cohort study

Editorial by Johnston and Openshaw

Sabina Illi, research assistant, ^a Erika von Mutius, head of asthma outpatient clinic, ^a Susanne Lau, research assistant, paediatrician, ^b Renate Bergmann, research assistant, paediatrician, ^b Bodo Niggemann, senior staff clinician, ^b Christine Sommerfeld, mathematician, ^b Ulrich Wahn, head of department, ^b the MAS Group. 

^a Department of Pulmonology and Allergology, University Children's Hospital, Lindwurmstrasse 4, 80337 Munich, Germany, ^b Department of Paediatric Pneumology and Immunology, Charité, Humboldt University, Augustenburger Platz 1, 13353 Berlin, Germany

Correspondence to: Sabina Illi sabina.illi{at}kk-i.med.uni-muenchen.de

Objective: To investigate the association between early childhood infections and subsequent development of asthma.
Design: Longitudinal birth cohort study.
Setting: Five children's hospitals in five German cities.
Participants: 1314 children born in 1990 followed from birth to the age of 7 years.
Main outcome measures: Asthma and asthmatic symptoms assessed longitudinally by parental questionnaires; atopic sensitisation assessed longitudinally by determination of IgE concentrations to various allergens; bronchial hyperreactivity assessed by bronchial histamine challenge at age 7 years.
Results: Compared with children with 1 episode of runny nose before the age of 1 year, those with 2 episodes were less likely to have a doctor's diagnosis of asthma at 7 years old (odds ratio 0.52 (95% confidence interval 0.29 to 0.92)) or to have wheeze at 7 years old (0.60 (0.38 to 0.94)), and were less likely to be atopic before the age of 5 years. Similarly, having 1 viral infection of the herpes type in the first 3 years of life was inversely associated with asthma at age 7 (odds ratio 0.48 (0.26 to 0.89)). Repeated lower respiratory tract infections in the first 3 years of life showed a positive association with wheeze up to the age of 7 years (odds ratio 3.37 (1.92 to 5.92) for 4 infections v 3 infections).
Conclusion: Repeated viral infections other than lower respiratory tract infections early in life may reduce the risk of developing asthma up to school age.

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© BMJ 2001

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