title: Environmental Determinants of Bronchial Asthma among Saudi School Children in Southwestern Saudi Arabia.
abstract: The aim here was to study the possible environmental and dietary determinants of asthma among school-aged children in Southwestern Saudi Arabia. In a cross-sectional study on a representative sample in Najran in Southwestern Saudi Arabia using an Arabic version of the modified ISAAC Phase III, parent-administered questionnaire data were collected. Skin prick tests (SPTs) were performed. The study included 1700 school children, out of them 468 (27.5%) were diagnosed with, cases of bronchial asthma and 20.8% (353) reported a 12-month nocturnal cough (as a proxy of severe asthma). In multivariable analysis, the study identified the following risk factors for having asthma or severe asthma: having dogs in the house, being male, being exposed to dense truck traffic on the street, using wood as a cooking fuel, conducting vigorous exercise, consuming eggs, consuming vegetables, having an allergic sensitization to dog hair, and being exposed toCladosporium, pigweed, and Bermuda grass. On the other hand, the following food stuffs were found to be protective: seafood, fruit, and dairy products. Comprehensive school educational programs for both children and their parents should be adopted to prevent the use of wood in cooking and heating, to ensure that house pets are properly cared for, and to encourage proper dietary habits. Physicians should be informed of the patterns of allergens in order to improve asthma diagnosis and management.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Najran University, Najran 1988, Saudi Arabia. jobrancv@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Jobran M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Alqahtani
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Microbiology, College of Medicine, Najran University, Najran 1988, Saudi Arabia. ahmedmoradasaad@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Ahmed M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Asaad
authors.affiliation: Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine, King Khalid University, Abha 61421, Saudi Arabia. njgirgis@yahoo.co.uk.|Department of Community Medicine, College of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura 35516, Egypt. njgirgis@yahoo.co.uk.
authors.forename: Nabil J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Awadalla
authors.affiliation: Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine, King Khalid University, Abha 61421, Saudi Arabia. mahfouz2005@gmail.com.|Department of Epidemiology, High Institute of Public Health, Alexandria University, Alexandria 21511, Egypt. mahfouz2005@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Ahmed A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Mahfouz
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000485:Allergens / Q000145:classification*; D000818:Animals; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D002648:Child; D002963:Cladosporium; D003296:Cooking / Q000379:methods; D003371:Cough / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003611:Dairy Products; D004032:Diet; D004285:Dogs; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D005638:Fruit; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D057805:Pets; D006109:Poaceae; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012529:Saudi Arabia / Q000453:epidemiology; D017747:Seafood; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012882:Skin Tests; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014675:Vegetables
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens
keywords: Southwestern Saudi Arabia; dietary factors; environmental; school children asthma