Prevalence and severity of XXXX in seven climatic regions of New South Wales.

@entity1 @entity565 @entity56 @entity112
OBJECTIVE: To compare the prevalence and severity of @entity56 in @entity1 in different regions. We hypothesised that regions with different standardised hospital admission rates would have different prevalences of @entity565 and that diverse climates would result in a range of sensitisations to different allergens. DESIGN AND SETTING: We studied large random population samples of @entity1 in seven regions in New South Wales (NSW) in 1991-1993. Hospitalisation rates were obtained from NSW Department of Health data. @entity1 : 6394 @entity1 aged 8-11 years. OUTCOME MEASURES: History of respiratory symptoms by self-administered questionnaire; airway hyperresponsiveness by @entity112 inhalation test; and sensitisation to allergens by skin-prick tests. RESULTS: @entity1 in all regions had a high prevalence of recent wheeze (22%-27%), of diagnosed @entity565 (24%-38%) and of use of @entity565 medications (22%-30%), but no region was consistently higher or lower for all measurements. The prevalence of current @entity565 in @entity1 living in three coastal regions (where sensitisation to house-dust mites was high) and in the far west (where sensitisation to alternaria was high) was 12%-13%, which was significantly higher than the prevalence of 7%-10% in @entity1 living in three inland regions (where sensitisation to these allergens was lower) (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: We found significant variations in the prevalence and severity of @entity565 in NSW. The prevalence of hospitalisations, diagnosed @entity565 , recent symptoms and medication use may relate to different regional diagnostic patterns, whereas current @entity565 prevalence may relate to different levels of @entity56 .
