Association between prenatal and neonatal factors and occurrence of asthma symptoms in six-year-old children.

The objective was to estimate association between prenatal and neonatal factors and asthma symptoms in children at six years of age. A cross-sectional study using secondary data from a cohort study with a sample of 578 children was carried out. Data were analyzed using three levels hierarchical Poisson Regression. Of the 578 children included in the study, 43.4% (95% CI 39.4; 47.4) had asthma symptoms. The variables with significantly higher prevalence of symptoms and asthma at six years of age were: male gender, with 5% higher prevalence (PR = 1.05 95% CI 1.01; 1.11) (p = 0.043); children of pregnant women presenting infectious diseases with 7% higher prevalence (PR = 1.07; 95% CI 1.02; 1.13) (p = 0.011); children who were not breastfed, with a 12% higher prevalence (PR = 1.12; 95% CI 1.02; 1.24) (p = 0.022) and children with respiratory problems in the first month of life, with a 14% higher prevalence (PR = 1.14; 95% CI 1.01; 1.29) (p = 0.033). It could be concluded that male gender, time-independent breastfeeding deprivation and respiratory problems in the first month of life were independently associated with asthma symptoms at six years of age. The occurrence of infectious diseases during pregnancy was the only factor with intrauterine physiology that was associated with the occurrence of asthma symptoms at six years of age.