Abstract
Background: There is an increased risk of asthma after viral wheezing
episodes in early childhood, but unfortunately, prospective longitudinal
data are lacking. The aim of this cohort study was to evaluate the risk
of asthma in young adulthood after hospitalization for viral wheezing
episodes in early childhood. Methods: The original cohort comprised 100
individuals aged <24 months who were hospitalized for viral
wheezing episodes in 1992–1993. After the index episode, data on a
diagnosis of asthma 1 year later and at median ages of 4.0, 7.2 and 12.3
years were recorded in follow-up visits. Forty-nine individuals attended
the latest follow-up visit at the age of 17-20 years. Current asthma was
diagnosed based on symptoms at the time of the last follow-up, use of
inhaled corticosteroids and peak expiratory flow (PEF) monitoring.
Results: Twenty-six (53%) of the 49 cohort individuals had asthma at a
mean age of 18.8 years. In multivariate analyses, a diagnosis of asthma
1 year after index hospitalization and at ages 4.0, 7.2 and 12.3 years
were significant risk factors for current asthma (adjusted odds ratios
[aORs] of 7.13, 8.86, 8.05 and 21.16, respectively). Atopic
dermatitis in infancy (aOR: 4.20) and eosinophilia on admission (5.18)
were also significant predictive factors for asthma. Conclusion: Over
half (26/49) of the participants who had been hospitalized for viral
wheezing episodes in early childhood had asthma in young adulthood. An
asthma diagnosis at any age during childhood, as well as eosinophilia in
early childhood, were independent significant predictive factors for
asthma.