The association between home and vehicle environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) and chronic bronchitis in a Canadian population: the Canadian Community Health Survey, 2005.

This study aimed to determine the association between home and vehicle exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), and chronic bronchitis based on data from 64,961 non-smokers aged 12 years and older who participated in the 2005 Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS). The proportion of respondents who reported ETS exposure in the home and vehicle was 9.0% and 8.4% respectively. The prevalence of self-reported doctor diagnosed chronic bronchitis was 1.5%. When considered separately, home and vehicle ETS were both significantly associated with chronic bronchitis in children and adolescents aged 12-19 years, with adjusted odds ratios of 2.30 (95% CI 1.46-3.63) and 2.25 (95% CI 1.42-3.58), respectively. Neither home, nor vehicle ETS exposure was significantly associated with chronic bronchitis in age groups greater than 19 years. When home and vehicle ETS exposure were considered together, and sex, age, allergies, asthma, marital status, level of education, and race where controlled for, home ETS exposure was not a significant predictor of chronic bronchitis (P = 0.296), while vehicle ETS was. The correlation between exposure variables was fair, with a kappa coefficient of 0.40 (P < 0.0001). Females, older age groups, non-white individuals, asthmatic patients, as well as individuals with allergies, no high school diploma, and those who were previously married had higher odds of chronic bronchitis. In conclusion, vehicle exposure to ETS was significantly associated with chronic bronchitis, and children and adolescents exposed to ETS were more susceptible to the disease.