title: Influence of childhood growth on asthma and lung function in adolescence.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Low birth weight and rapid infant growth in early infancy are associated with increased risk of childhood asthma, but little is known about the role of postinfancy growth in asthmatic children.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We sought to examine the associations of children's growth patterns with asthma, bronchial responsiveness, and lung function until adolescence.
  
  
  METHODS
  Individual growth trajectories from birth until 10 years of age were estimated by using linear spline multilevel models for 9723 children participating in a population-based prospective cohort study. Current asthma at 8, 14, and 17 years of age was based on questionnaires. Lung function and bronchial responsiveness or reversibility were measured during clinic visits at 8 and 15 years of age.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Rapid weight growth between 0 and 3 months of age was most consistently associated with increased risks of current asthma at the ages of 8 and 17 years, bronchial responsiveness at age 8 years, and bronchial reversibility at age 15 years. Rapid weight growth was associated with lung function values, with the strongest associations for weight gain between 3 and 7 years of age and higher forced vital capacity (FVC) and FEV1 values at age 15 years (0.12 [95% CI, 0.08 to 0.17] and 0.11 [95% CI, 0.07 to 0.15], z score per SD, respectively) and weight growth between 0 and 3 months of age and lower FEV1/FVC ratios at age 8 and 15 years (-0.13 [95% CI, -0.16 to -0.10] and -0.04 [95% CI, -0.07 to -0.01], z score per SD, respectively). Rapid length growth was associated with lower FVC and FVC1 values at age 15 years.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Faster weight growth in early childhood is associated with asthma and bronchial hyperresponsiveness, and faster weight growth across childhood is associated with higher FVC and FEV1 values.
authors.affiliation: School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom; Department of Pediatrics, Division of Respiratory Medicine, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Agnes M M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Sonnenschein-van der Voort
authors.affiliation: School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom; Medical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Laura D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Howe
authors.affiliation: School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Raquel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Granell
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Division of Respiratory Medicine, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Liesbeth
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Duijts
authors.affiliation: School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jonathan A C
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Sterne
authors.affiliation: School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tilling
authors.affiliation: School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom. Electronic address: a.j.henderson@bristol.ac.uk.
authors.forename: A John
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Henderson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D016535:Bronchial Hyperreactivity / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005541:Forced Expiratory Volume / Q000502:physiology; D057238:Growth Charts; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007230:Infant, Low Birth Weight; D008297:Male; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D015430:Weight Gain
keywords: ALSPAC; asthma; cohort study; growth; lung function