Good agreement between parental and self-completed questionnaires about allergic diseases and environmental factors in teenagers.

OBJECTIVES

To study whether the methodological change from parent to index subject as questionnaire respondent affected the prevalence estimates and risk factor patterns for allergic diseases in a longitudinal study.

STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING

A prospective study of asthma and allergic diseases among children was begun in 1996 within the Obstructive Lung Disease in Northern Sweden Study. In 2002, about 3,342 (95% of invited) teenagers (13 to 14 years) completed the annual questionnaire. A random sample of 294 (84% of invited) parents also completed the same extended International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood questionnaire. Skin prick tests were performed in 1996 and 2000.

RESULTS

There were no significant differences in the prevalence of rhinitis, eczema, or related environmental factors between parental and self-reports, except for the question of having a dog at home. The absolute agreement was high, whereas the kappa values were fair or moderate. Kappa values of questions regarding parental smoking were 0.8-0.9. Allergic sensitization was the major risk factor for both rhinitis and eczema, and the odds ratios were similar regardless of who reported the condition.

CONCLUSION

The agreement between the parental and teenagers' reports was good, and the methodological change did not affect the study results.