Assessment of the effect of socioeconomic factors on the prevalence of respiratory disorders in children

Numerous studies indicate that a major health problem in children are illnesses of the respiratory system. Currently, increased attention is being paid to family social conditions and environmental factors in the pathogenesis of these illnesses. The aim of this study was to determine whether socioeconomic factors are related to child morbidity and whether the frequency of some infectious illnesses (influenza, angina, infections of upper and lower respiratory tract) among children is associated with their tempo of growth. The data came from a cross-sectional survey on 119 girls and 106 boys, aged 9-10 years, attending a primary school in Opole, Poland. In the present study, the rate of biological development was evaluated using height and height-to-weight proportion. Height and weight were measured and used to calculated BMI. The socioeconomic status and child morbidity were assessed, as based on the information giving by parents. To asses the socioeconomic status, the following factors were analyzed: education of parents and self-assessment of their material condition. Statistical analysis of the material were conducted using Chi-square test and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results indicate that illnesses of the respiratory system are more frequent among children from families with a low socioeconomic status. Education of mother was most strongly related to the prevalence of these diseases. The prevalence of respiratory infections in the group of children whose mother have primary and vocational education was more than twice as common as that in the group of children whose mother have university education. No significant association was found between increased morbidity and the tempo of children's growth, but children who suffer from infectious diseases frequently are, on average, shorter and fatter than other children.