Effects of In Utero Smoke Exposure Seen in Teens

MONDAY, June 11 (HealthDay News) -- In utero smoke exposure is associated with poor asthma control and early-onset asthma in children assessed at 8 to 17 years of age, according to a study published in the June issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

Sam S. Oh, Ph.D., M.P.H., from the University of California in San Francisco, and colleagues performed a case-only analysis of 2,481 Latino and black subjects with asthma (ages 8 to 17 years).

The researchers found that poor asthma control among children was independently associated with in utero smoking (odds ratio [OR], 1.5; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.1 to 2.0). Secondary asthma outcomes, including early-onset asthma (OR, 1.7; 95 percent CI, 1.1 to 2.4), daytime symptoms (OR, 1.6; 95 percent CI, 1.1 to 2.1), and asthma-related limitation of activities (OR, 1.6; 95 percent CI, 1.2 to 2.2) were all associated with in utero smoking.

"Maternal smoking while in utero is associated with poor asthma control in black and Latino subjects assessed at 8 to 17 years of age," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

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