Resumen de Prevalence of asthma, its correlates, and validation of the Pre-School Asthma Risk Factors Scale (PS-ARFS) among preschool children in Lebanon

Souheil Hallit, Hala Sacre, Nelly Kheir, Rabih Hallit, Mirna Waked, Pascale Salameh

• Objectives: The Asthma Risk Factor Scale (ARFS) is used to screen for asthma in Lebanese preschool children (aged 3–16 years). The study objective was to describe factors associated with asthma, confirm ARFS score validity among Lebanese preschool children, and develop a risk score for asthma diagnosis in this age group (Pre-School Asthma Risk Factor Scale [PS-ARFS]).

  Methods: A cross-sectional study enrolled 515 preschool children (November 2018 and March 2019). The ARFS is a 15-item tool that assesses children’s environmental exposure, parental history of asthma, and dietary habits.

  Results: The percentage of asthmatic children was 8.2%. Higher odds of asthma in children were associated with living near a prairie sprayed with pesticides (odds ratio [OR] = 2.33), playing outdoors (OR = 2.89), having a heater in the bedroom (OR = 10.73), attending a nursery (OR = 2.91), having a mother who smokes cigarettes (OR = 3.35) or water pipe (OR = 2.46), a sister with a history of seasonal allergy (OR = 6.81), and a parental history (mother and father) of asthma (OR = 6.15 and OR = 9.83, respectively). Higher ARFS scores (OR = 1.144) were associated with higher odds of asthma. Accordingly, the PS-ARFS was created according to the following formula: ARFS score + (playing outdoor × 2.4) + (heating system in the bedroom × 12.9) + (having attended a nursery × 2.5) (area under the curve = 0.908 [0.860–0.957]; P < 0.001); at value: 14.20, Se = 84.3% and Sp = 90.9%.

  Conclusion: PS-ARFS is suggested for screening of asthma in preschool children in an epidemiological setting and in the absence of spirometry.