title: Prevalence and correlates of airway obstruction in a community-based sample of adults.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Virtually all the information available on the prevalence of obstructive airway disease is from Western countries. There are no data from Korea, and reports from other regions of Asia are poorly documented.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the prevalence and correlates of airway obstruction in a community-based setting in Korea.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional, population-based study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ansan City, near Seoul, South Korea.
  
  
  METHODS
  A sample of 1,160 community-dwelling men and women aged >or= 18 years (73.1% of the men and 4.1% of the women were either current or former smokers).
  
  
  METHODS
  Subjects underwent physical examinations following a standardized protocol. Data on demographic and health-related factors also were collected. Pulmonary function testing was administered according to American Thoracic Society (ATS) recommendations.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of airway obstruction was 10.3% (men, 17%; women, 5.6%) by ATS criteria. Ninety percent of the cases of airway obstruction were mild in degree. Twenty percent of male current smokers had airway obstruction. After adjusting for age, gender, and alcohol consumption, the odds of disease was 3.2 times greater in subjects who had smoked for >or= 20 pack-years vs never smokers (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.7 to 6.2). The adjusted odds of disease were 4.3-fold higher in subjects >or= 45 years of age vs those who were younger (95% CI, 2.6 to 7.0).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Since airway obstruction is strongly related to age and smoking, the prevalence of obstructive airway disease in countries like Korea, where the population is rapidly aging and cigarette smoking is on the rise among younger individuals (particularly among women), can be expected to increase. Further efforts to diagnose early obstructive airway disease and to prevent or delay its onset should be emphasized as a major public health concern.
authors.affiliation: Medical Science Research Center, Ansan Hospital, Korea University Medical Center, Ansan, South Korea.
authors.forename: Chol
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Kwang Ho
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: In
authors.forename: Jae Jeong
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Shim
authors.forename: Se Hwa
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Yoo
authors.forename: Kyung Ho
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: Minchol
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.forename: Kwisook
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Choi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000402:Airway Obstruction / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology