Associated factors with recurrent wheezing in infants: is there difference between the sexes?

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Identify associated factors for recurrent wheezing (RW) in male and female infants. METHODS: Cross-sectional multicentric study using the standardized questionnaire from the Estudio Internacional sobre Sibilancias en Lactantes (EISL). The questionnaire was applied to parents of 9345 infants aged 12-15 months at the time of immunization/routine visits. RESULTS: One thousand two hundred and sixty-one (13.5%) males and nine hundred sixty-three (10.3%) females have had RW (?3 episodes), respectively (p10 colds episodes (OR?=?3.46; IC 95% 2.35-5.07), air pollution (OR?=?1.33; IC 95% 1.12-1.59), molds at home (OR?=?1.23; IC 95% 1.03-1.47), Afro-descendants (OR?=?1.42; IC 95% 1.20-1.69), bronchopneumonia (OR?=?1.41; IC; 1.11-1.78), severe episodes of wheezing in the first year (OR?=?1.56; IC 95% 1.29-1.89), treatment with bronchodilators (OR?=?1.60; IC 95% 1.22-2,1) and treatment with oral corticosteroids (OR?=?1,23; IC 95% 0.99-1,52). Associated factors for RW for females were passive smoking (OR?=?1.24; IC 95% 1.01-1,51), parents diagnosed with asthma (OR?=?1.32; IC 95% 1,08-1,62), parents with allergic rhinitis (OR?=?1.26; IC 95% 1.04-1.53), daycare attendance (OR?=?1.48; IC 95% 1.17-1,88), colds in the first 6 months of life (OR?=?2.19; IC 95% 1.69-2.82), personal diagnosis of asthma (OR?=?1.84; IC 95% 1.39-2.44), emergency room visits (OR?=?1.78; IC 95% 1.44-2.21), nighttime symptoms (OR?=?2.89; IC 95% 2.34-3.53) and updated immunization (OR?=?0.62; IC 95% 0.41-0.96). CONCLUSION: There are differences in associated factors for RW between genders. Identification of these differences could be useful to the approach and management of RW between boys and girls.