Prevalence of respiratory symptoms and diseases in schoolchildren living in a polluted and in a low polluted area in Israel

Abstract

Second and fifth grade schoolchildren living in two communities with different levels of air pollution were studied. The parents of these children filled out ATS-NHLI health questionnaires. The prevalence of reported respiratory symptoms and pulmonary diseases was found to be significantly higher among children growing up in the polluted community (Ashdod) as compared with the low-pollution area (Hadera). Logistic models fitted for the respiratory conditions which differed significantly between both areas of residence also included background variables that could be responsible for these differences. Relative risk values, which were calculated from the logistic models, were in the range of 1.47 for cough without cold to 2.66 for asthma for children from Ashdod, as compared with 1.00 for children from Hadera.