Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10216/94021
Author(s): Pedro Moreira
Andrl Moreira
Patricia Padrao
Luis Delgado
Title: The role of economic and educational factors in asthma: Evidence from the Portuguese Health Survey
Issue Date: 2008
Abstract: Objective: To evaluate the importance of economic and educational factors in determining the risk of asthma in adults. Study design and methods: This was a cross-sectional study in a representative sample of Portuguese adults (20,977 females and 18,663 mates) from the main regions of mainland Portugal. Participants were categorized according to years of education (<= 4, 5-9, 10-12 and > 12 years) and income (<= 314, 315-547, 548-815 and > 815 Euros/month). Information on asthma was based on answers to the following question: 'Have you had asthma in the previous year?' Logistic regression models were fitted to estimate the magnitude of the association between asthma and education/income, adjusting for confounders (body mass index, age, smoking habits, physical activity, area of residence, number of household members and income/education). Results: In females and mates, the odds of having asthma decreased with increasing income (P-value for trend <0.001), with odds ratios of 0.52 [95% confidence intervals (CI) 0.41-0.66] and 0.55 (95%CI 0.44-0.68) for those with a monthly income > 815 Euros compared with those with a monthly income <= 314 Euros, respectively. For both genders, the odds of having asthma were not significantly associated with years of education. Conclusion: A significant positive association between per capita national income and asthma reinforces that public policy should stress the importance of economic growth as a means for preventing asthma occurrence and improving quality of life.
Subject: Ciências da saúde
Health sciences
Scientific areas: Ciências médicas e da saúde::Ciências da saúde
Medical and Health sciences::Health sciences
URI: https://repositorio-aberto.up.pt/handle/10216/94021
Document Type: Artigo em Revista Científica Internacional
Rights: restrictedAccess
Appears in Collections:FCNAUP - Artigo em Revista Científica Internacional
FMUP - Artigo em Revista Científica Internacional

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