TITLE:
The Pattern of Comorbidities of Childhood Asthma as Seen in the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria
AUTHORS:
Uchenna Onubogu, Boma West
KEYWORDS:
Childhood Asthma, Asthma Comorbidity, Rhinitis, Allergic Conjunctivitis, Food Allergy, Atopic Dermatitis
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Respiratory Diseases,
Vol.11 No.1,
February
24,
2021
ABSTRACT: Background:
Asthma exits with comorbidities which can affect the quality of life of
children with asthma. Objective: To identify the common comorbidities with
asthma, identify factors associated with the presence of specific comorbidities
and evaluate their impact on asthma severity and control among children
attending the respiratory clinic in the Rivers State University Teaching
Hospital. Materials & Methods: All asthma cases seen in the paediatric
respiratory clinic, from 1st November 2014 to 30th October 2019 were consecutively recruited. Results: Of 264 children with
asthma, 190 (72.0%) had other comorbidities with a F:M ratio of 1.56:1.
Difficulty in breathing, chest pain, and the degree of asthma control were significantly associated with having other
comorbidities while SPO2 at 1st consult was significantly
lower in children with comorbidities, P value 0.05. Allergic rhinitis 116 (43.9%), adenotonsillar hypertrophy 99 (37.5%),
atopic dermatitis 54 (20.5%), allergic conjunctivitis 37 (14%), food allergy 27
(10.2) and Gastroesophageal reflux14 (5.3%) were the commonest comorbidities
identified. Majority (24, 88.9%) had allergy to one type of food.
Children years and those whose age at diagnosis was years were significantly at lower risk of having atopic dermatitis.
Gastroesophageal reflux disease was significantly more likely to be seen in
children aged > 11 years, overweight children, and those presenting
with chest pain or chest tightness. Presence of various comorbidities increased
the odds of having a more severe asthma, and likelihood of which increased with
increasing number of coexisting comorbidities. Conclusion: The prevalence of
allergic comorbidity is high among asthmatic children with allergic rhinitis
being the commonest cause. Most children with asthma have more than one
allergic comorbidity. A comprehensive evaluation of these comorbidities is thus
essential in the management of asthmatic children for improved outcomes and
quality of life.