title: [Asthma and rhinitis prevalence and co-morbidity in 13-14-year-old schoolchildren in the city of Fortaleza, Ceará State, Brazil].
abstract: This study aimed to measure the prevalence rates for asthma and rhinitis and the association between the two conditions. This was a cross-sectional study of 3,015 adolescents (13-14 years of age) in Fortaleza, Ceará State, Brazil, in public and private schools, using the protocol from the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC), in 2006-2007. Prevalence rates were 22.6% for asthma, 43.2% for rhinitis, and 18.7% for rhinoconjunctivitis, with a predominance of females (p = 0.002, p < 0.001, and p < 0/001, respectively) and private school students (p < 0.001). Among adolescents that reported asthma, the rhinitis rate was 64.4% and the rhinoconjunctivitis rate was 35.3%. The rates of association were 14.6% between asthma and rhinitis and 8% between asthma and rhinoconjunctivitis, with a predominance of females (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001, respectively) and associated with speech-limiting wheezing (p = 0.037 and p = 0.004, respectively). The study can help call health professionals' attention to the importance of an integrated approach to these illnesses, considering the "single airway" concept and seeking treatment options that act on both asthma and rhinitis when the two conditions present simultaneously.
authors.affiliation: Universidade Estadual do Ceará, Fortaleza, Brasil. fatimaluna@terra.com.br
authors.forename: Maria de Fátima Gomes de
authors.initials: Mde F
authors.lastname: Luna
authors.forename: Paulo César de
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Almeida
authors.forename: Marcelo Gurgel Carlos da
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Silva
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012220:Rhinitis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy; D012574:Schools / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D017678:Sex Distribution; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires