title: Co-morbidities and cognitive status in a cohort of teenagers with asthma.
abstract: There is limited data regarding co-morbidities and cognitive status of asthma during childhood and adolescence. The aim of the current study was to explore the presence of co-morbidities and cognitive status in a large cohort of teenagers with asthma.
  
  
  
  The medical records of 314,897 consecutive 17-year-old males, undergoing comprehensive medical and cognitive evaluation prior to recruitment for military service, were reviewed. The prevalence of co-morbidities and a cognitive assessment in subjects with asthma were compared to those without asthma. Both a univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were performed.
  
  
  
  Active asthma was documented in 21,728 (6.9%) subjects: 3.3% were diagnosed with mild intermittent asthma, and 3.6% with persistent asthma. A significant positive correlation between a higher cognitive score and prevalence of asthma was found (P < 0.001), with a 55% increased prevalence of asthma in the subjects with the highest cognitive score compared to those with the lowest score. The following co-morbidities were significantly more prevalent in asthmatics compared to non-asthmatics: chronic rhinitis (35% vs. 5%), atopic dermatitis (2% vs. 0.4%), urticaria (1% vs. 0.3%), anaphylaxis (0.4% vs. 0.1%), chronic sinusitis (0.4% vs. 0.1%), overweight with body mass index (BMI) above 25 kg/m(2) (20% vs. 17%) and underweight with BMI less than 17 kg/m(2) (3.2% vs. 2.8%), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) (1% vs. 0.5%), and thyroid disorders(0.4% vs. 0.2%). Chronic rhinitis and sinusitis, atopic dermatitis, IBS, and thyroid disorders were all significantly more prevalent in persistent compared to intermittent asthma (P < 0.001).
  
  
  
  In adolescence, a higher cognitive status was associated with a higher rate of asthma. Chronic rhinitis was the most prevalent co-morbidity and was found in one third of adolescent asthmatics. Other allergic diseases, chronic sinusitis, over and underweight, IBS, and thyroid disorders were also more prevalent in asthmatics. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2016; 51:901-907. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Shlomo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pulmonary Medicine, Hadassah University Medical Center Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Neville
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Berkman
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Elie
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Picard
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pulmonary Medicine, Hadassah University Medical Center Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Tali
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Levi
authors.affiliation: Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel Hashomer, Israel.
authors.forename: Estela
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Derazne
authors.affiliation: Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel Hashomer, Israel.
authors.forename: Dorit
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Tzur
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pulmonary Medicine, Hadassah University Medical Center Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Chaim
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Springer
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pulmonary Medicine, Hadassah University Medical Center Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Avraham
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Avital
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Leon
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Joseph
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Shmuel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Goldberg
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003071:Cognition; D015897:Comorbidity; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000453:epidemiology; D007557:Israel / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D050177:Overweight / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012220:Rhinitis / Q000453:epidemiology; D012852:Sinusitis / Q000453:epidemiology; D014581:Urticaria / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: asthma co-morbidities; cognitive status; intermittent asthma; persistent asthma; teenagers