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Childhood
Respiratory Disease boosts illness and death
risks in Adulthood
Newswise — Respiratory
disease, particularly bronchitis, in early
childhood boosts the risks of illness and
premature death in adulthood, indicates
research published ahead of print in Thorax.
The researchers base their
findings on around 10,000 male graduates who
went to Glasgow University between 1948 and
1968 and agreed to be part of a long term
study to track their health.
No women were included
because fewer went to university at that
time than do now.
As students they were
examined by a doctor and supplied details of
childhood illness, including bronchitis,
asthma, and pneumonia, as well as their
weight, height, and blood pressure.
Between 1998 and 2002,
efforts were made to trace and survey those
who were still alive. In all, 4044 out of
8410 responded.
Those who had had
bronchitis, pneumonia, or asthma in early
childhood were 57% more likely to die of
respiratory disease than those who had not
had these illnesses as children.
And they were more than
twice as likely to die of chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD, the
umbrella term for progressive respiratory
diseases, such as emphysema and bronchitis.
Students who had had
bronchitis were also 38% more likely to die
of cardiovascular disease.
Respiratory illness during
childhood was also associated with a higher
risk of assorted respiratory problems in
adulthood, ranging from the relatively minor
to the severe.
These findings also held
true among those who had never smoked.
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