Indoor environmental risk factors and childhood asthma: a case-control study in a subtropical area.

This study examined the relation between indoor environmental factors and childhood asthma in a subtropical area. A hospital-based case-control study was performed in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, between July of 1995 and June of 1996. Eighty-six children seen in the out-patient clinic of our university hospital and who had a first-time diagnosis of asthma made by a pediatrician were the test group; 86 control subjects were selected from children attending the Childhood Orthopaedic Clinic in the same hospital and who had no previous diagnosis of asthma or asthma symptoms and no history of physician confirmed atopic diseases. The control subjects were matched with test case children on the basis of gender and age. Information was obtained from parents using a structured questionnaire. Of the many indoor environmental factors included in this study, only home dampness showed an association with asthma (adjusted odds ratio=1.77; 95% confidence intervals, 1.24-2.53). We conclude that dampness in the home is a new public health risk factor related to asthma in subtropical areas.