A relatively high prevalence and severity of asthma, allergic rhinitis and atopic eczema in schoolchildren in the Sultanate of Oman.

OBJECTIVES: Although asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema are among the most common chronic diseases in children worldwide, there is very limited information about the burden of these conditions in Oman. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and severity of symptoms of asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema in Omani schoolchildren using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) Phase I questionnaire. METHODS: An Arabic version of the ISAAC Phase I questionnaire was completed by parents of 3893 children aged 6-7 years and self-completed by 3174 children aged 13-14 years, randomly selected from a nationwide sample of public schools. RESULTS: The prevalence rates of reported diagnoses of asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema were higher in older children (20.7%, 10.5% and 14.4% compared with 10.5%, 7.4% and 7.5%, respectively, in young children). In young children, 277 were current wheezers and of these 40.8% had sleep-disturbing wheeze at least once a week and 45.1% had speech-limiting wheeze during the past year. Similarly, 283 older children were current wheezers, and of these 30.0% had sleep-disturbing wheeze at least once a week and 37.5% had speech-limiting wheeze during the past year. Exercise-induced wheeze was higher in older children (19.2% vs 6.9%; P < 0.001). Allergic rhinitis and eczema were also associated with significant sleep disturbance and limitation of activity in both age groups. CONCLUSION: Allergic conditions in Omani schoolchildren are common and associated with significant morbidity. Further research is required to identify the local risk factors for allergy to allow better understanding and management of these conditions.

Prevalence of asthma symptoms in Omani schoolchildren.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of asthma in Omani schoolchildren using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Children (ISAAC) protocols. METHOD: The ISAAC-written questionnaire was completed by a total of 7,067 Omani schoolchildren (3,893 children aged 6-7 years of which 56% were boys and 3,174 aged 13-14 years of which 51% were boys) from the 10 health regions in the country. RESULTS: The estimated mean national 12-month prevalence of any wheeze, night waking with wheeze, speech limiting wheeze and exercise wheeze were respectively 7.8%, 3.5%, 3.2% and 6.9% for the 6-7 year age group and 8.9%, 2.9%, 4.0% and 19.2% for the 13-14 year age group. Both age groups reported high prevalence of night cough (19.6% and 20.9% in the younger and the older children respectively). The prevalence of self-reported asthma diagnosis was higher in the older age group (20.7% vs. 10.5%, p<0.001). In the younger age group, the diagnosis of asthma was more common in boys (12.5% vs. 8.0%, p>0.001), but there was no significant difference between the two sexes in the older age group (22.0% of boys vs. 20.5% of girls). There was nearly three-fold difference in the prevalence of self-reported diagnosis of asthma between the regions with the highest and the lowest prevalence of asthma for both young and older children (from 5.3% and 9.5% in Musandam to 14.2% and 30.6% in South Sharqiya, respectively). CONCLUSION: The results of this first epidemiological survey of asthma in Oman indicate that asthma is common in Omani children and adolescents. Night cough is the most frequent symptom. There is also significant regional variation in prevalence of asthma symptoms and diagnosis within the country and this requires further investigation.