title: Prevalence of asthma and risk factors for asthma-like symptoms in Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children in the northern territories of Canada.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Few studies have investigated the prevalence and risk factors of asthma in Canadian Aboriginal children.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the prevalence of asthma and asthma-like symptoms, as well as the risk factors for asthma-like symptoms, in Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children living in the northern territories of Canada.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data on 2404 children, aged between 0 and 11 years, who participated in the North component of the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth were used in the present study. A child was considered to have an asthma-like symptom if there was a report of ever having had asthma, asthma attacks or wheeze in the past 12 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After excluding 59 children with missing information about race, 1399 children (59.7%) were of Aboriginal ancestry. The prevalence of asthma was significantly lower (P<0.05) in Aboriginal children (5.7%) than non-Aboriginal children (10.0%), while the prevalence of wheeze was similar between Aboriginal (15.0%) and non-Aboriginal (14.5%) children. In Aboriginal children, infants and toddlers had a significantly greater prevalence of asthma-like symptoms (30.0%) than preschool-aged children (21.5%) and school-aged children (11.5%). Childhood allergy and a mother's daily smoking habit were significant risk factors for asthma-like symptoms in both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children. In addition, infants and toddlers were at increased risk of asthma-like symptoms in Aboriginal children. In analyses restricted to specific outcomes, a mother's daily smoking habit was a significant risk factor for current wheeze in Aboriginal children and for ever having had asthma in non-Aboriginal children.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Asthma prevalence appears to be lower in Aboriginal children than in non-Aboriginal children. The association between daily maternal smoking and asthma-like symptoms, which has been mainly reported for children living in urban areas, was observed in Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children living in northern and remote communities in Canada.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada.
authors.forename: Zhiwei
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Brian H
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Rowe
authors.forename: Carina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Majaesic
authors.forename: Cindy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: O'Hara
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Senthilselvan
mesh_terms: D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D015873:Northwest Territories / Q000453:epidemiology; D020957:Nunavut / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D015874:Yukon Territory / Q000453:epidemiology