Childhood asthma and its relationship with tonsillar tissue.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of asthma among 4-17 years old school children and to determine the relationship between frequent tonsillitis, tonsillar hypertrophy and asthma-related symptoms. A total of 2,000 school children, aged 4-17 years, in Denizli were surveyed using the ISAAC questionnaire; the size of the tonsils was evaluated by physical examination. A total of 1,784 questionnaires were completed giving an overall response rate of 89.2%. The prevalence of lifetime wheezing, 12-month wheezing and lifetime doctor-diagnosed asthma were 16.4%, 6.2% and 1.7%, respectively. The prevalence of frequent tonsillitis and tonsillar hypertrophy were 19.9% and 3.4%, respectively. Tonsillar hypertrophy was positively correlated with a history of frequent tonsillitis. Frequent tonsillitis and tonsillar hypertrophy could be evaluated as risk factors for asthma due to their significant association with asthma-related symptoms.
Akcay
Ahmet
A
Department of Pediatrics, Pamukkale School of Medicine, Pamukkale University, Pamukkale, Turkey. aahmetakcay@hotmail.com
Tamay
Zeynep
Z
Dağdeviren
Erol
E
Guler
Nermin
N
Ones
Ulker
U
Kara
Cüneyt Orhan
CO
Zencir
Mehmet
M
D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006984:Hypertrophy; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012135:Respiratory Sounds; D012307:Risk Factors; D014069:Tonsillitis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology*; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology