Risk Factors Determining Allergic Airway Diseases in Turkish Subjects

With regard to changes in life-style after the 1980s, the reflection of environmental factors on the evolution of allergic airway disease (AAD) has not yet been analyzed in Turkey. In this trial, we aimed to determine the factors related to AAD in Turkish subjects. Patients diagnosed as having asthma and or rhinitis with positive skin prick tests (SPTs) were accepted as members of the "atopic group" (n = 235). Subjects demonstrated to have negative SPTs and no clinical evidence of any atopic disorder were accepted as members of the "nonatopic control group" (n = 84). Data obtained from a questionnaire applied cross-sectionally to the study groups were compared for risk factor analysis. According to the results of univariate analysis, nonatopic controls were found to have been born in villages more frequently than those in the atopic group (14.3% vs. 4.7%, p= 0.02). Atopic group members had lived in apartments during childhood more frequently than nonatopic controls (53.6% vs. 38%, p = 0.04). Atopic group members, particularly the asthmatics, had lower sibship size (≤ 1 sibling) (41.3% vs. 16.7%, p = 0.0003) and nonatopic subjects had higher sibship size (≥3 siblings) (73.8% vs. 43.4%, p