title: Self-reported asthma in Chaldeans, Arabs, and African Americans: factors associated with asthma.
abstract: Although the prevalence of asthma is increasing worldwide, there are striking, and largely unexplained differences across various racial and ethnic groups. The current study looks at the prevalence of asthma and risk factors between Chaldeans, Arabs, and African Americans. We used Health Assessment Survey data representing 3,136 respondents. Prevalence across the three ethnic groups were compared using unadjusted and adjusted odds ratios, accounting for multiple risk factors. There were significant socio-demographic differences across all ethnic groups. Asthma prevalence was significantly lower in Arabs (9.4%) and Chaldeans (5.4%) than in Non-Middle Eastern Whites (14.4%). African American prevalence was 14.4%. The significantly lower prevalence of asthma among Chaldean and Arabs, as compared to African Americans, were not explained by traditional risk factors included in our models. We therefore, suggest that future studies should explore the possible role of ethnic-specific differences in gene × environmental interactions in the precipitation and/or exacerbation of asthma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine & Public Health Sciences, Division of Occupation and Environmental Health, Wayne State University School of Medicine, 3939 Woodward Ave., 3rd floor, Detroit, MI 48201, USA. hjamil@med.wayne.edu
authors.forename: Hikmet
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jamil
authors.forename: Delbert
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Raymond
authors.forename: Monty
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fakhouri
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Templin
authors.forename: Radwan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Khoury
authors.forename: Haifa
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fakhouri
authors.forename: Bengt B
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Arnetz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D018912:Arabs; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000209:etiology*; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D057566:Self Report; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult