Neonatal characteristics and risk of atopic asthma in schoolchildren: results from a large prospective birth-cohort study.

Aim: Asthma is among the most common chronic diseases in childhood and steadily increasing in prevalence. Identification of risk predictors for a hospitalization for atopic asthma in childhood may help design prevention programmes and improve our understanding of disease pathobiology.

Methods: An ongoing birth-cohort study prospectively enrolled all liveborn infants in Tyrol.