Obesity and its relationship with asthma prevalence and severity in adolescents from southern Brazil.

Obesity has been pointed out as a risk factor for higher prevalence of asthma and asthma-related symptoms in adolescents. The objective was to evaluate the relationship between the prevalence of asthma and obesity in adolescents living in Santa Maria and surroundings (state of Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil), applying the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) protocol. A total of 4,010 of 6,123 schoolchildren, 13 to 14 years of age, enrolled in the ISAAC phase III protocol (asthma core questionnaire) and were nutritionally evaluated: height, weight, and triceps skinfold (TSF) measurements.

[Prevalence and severity of asthma among adolescents and their relationship with the body mass index].

Objective: To investigate the relationship between the increase of body mass index and the prevalence and severity of asthma in adolescents from Santa Maria, in southern Brazil, and surrounding regions.

Method: A cross-sectional, observational, population-based study was carried out with 4,010 schoolchildren aged 13 and 14 years, without any gender restrictions, who answered the written questionnaire of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) phase III. Body mass index was used (kg/m2) as recommended by the World Health Organization for the assessment of nutritional status: below the fifth percentile (underweight), at or above the fifth percentile and below the 85th percentile (normal weight), at or above the 85th percentile and below the 95th percentile (overweight), and at or above the 95th percentile (obesity).