TABLE 1.
Patient characteristics, allergic comorbidities, asthma control, physical activity, and TV attendance in asthmatic and healthy preschoolers
| Patient characteristics |
Healthy controls (n = 53) |
Asthmatic patients (n = 140) |
p value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gender (F/M) | 31/22 | 58/82 | 0.04 |
| Age (y) mean ± SD | 5.0 ± 0.8 | 5.3 ± 0.7 | ns |
| Wheezer (yes), n (%) | 0 (0%) | 140 (100%) | <.0001 |
| Atopic diseases (yes), n (%) | |||
| Allergic rhinitis, n (%) | 0 (0%) | 89 (64%) | <.0001 |
| Atopic dermatitis, n (%) | 0 (0%) | 73 (52%) | <.0001 |
| Adverse food reaction, n (%) | 0 (0%) | 44 (31%) | <.0001 |
| Asthma control, n (%) | |||
| Controlled | – | 74 (53%) | – |
| Partly controlled | – | 50 (36%) | – |
| Uncontrolled | – | 16 (11%) | – |
| Vigorous physical activity (times per week), n (%) | |||
| Never or occasionally | 13 (25%) | 42 (30%) | ns |
| Once/twice | 10 (19%) | 24 (17%) | ns |
| Three times or more | 30 (57%) | 75 (53%) | ns |
| TV attendance (hours per day), n (%) | |||
| ≤1 h | 25 (47%) | 36 (26%) | <.05 |
| 1–3 h | 22 (42%) | 82 (59%) | <.05 |
| ≥3 h | 6 (11%) | 22 (16%) | ns |
Statistically significant values are shown bold.