A Thesis submitted to The University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Medicine. / The aim of this study is to conduct a systematic review of the existing evidence on marijuana use and its association, or the absence of an association, with an increased risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung cancer, and/or chronic respiratory symptoms. We hypothesize that a systematic review will not demonstrate sufficient evidence to determine that marijuana use increases the risk of developing COPD, lung cancer, and/or chronic respiratory symptoms. The term “chronic respiratory symptoms” encompasses the following: cough, sputum production, wheeze, shortness of breath, acute bronchitis, and chest tightness. The following databases were searched for the topics of marijuana smoking, COPD, lung cancer, and chronic respiratory symptoms: MEDLINE (PubMed/OvidSP), the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, PsycINFO, the Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, and Google Scholar. The search ended September 7th, 2016. Studies were initially limited only by the requirement that they were based upon human research and published in English. Studies were included if they were systematic reviews, randomized controlled trials (RCTs), prospective or retrospective cohort studies, case control studies, or cross‐sectional studies. A total of 739 articles were screened for eligibility, 17 unique studies met the inclusion criteria and underwent qualitative analysis1‐17. The quality of systematic reviews was evaluated using the AMSTAR criteria18; cohort, case‐control, and cross sectional studies were evaluated based upon the Newcastle‐Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale (NOS) 19. No RCTs were identified. The overall quality of the evidence for each outcome was determined by utilizing the GRADE methodology20‐21. Studies were primarily assessed by a single reviewer, with random validation of assessments on a limited number of studies by a second reviewer. Overall, there is very low quality evidence that assesses for an association between marijuana smoking and an increased risk of developing lung cancer, COPD, and/or chronic respiratory symptoms. There was no conclusive finding for lung cancer and COPD. However, seven of eight studies concluded that there was an association between marijuana use and chronic respiratory symptoms. The totality of evidence describing any associations between marijuana smoking and the risk of developing lung cancer, COPD, and/or chronic respiratory symptoms is not strong enough to confidently state that marijuana use is associated with any of these chronic pulmonary conditions. Of all the evidence examined in this systematic review, the most convincing appears to be that relating to a potential positive association between marijuana smoking and the risk of developing chronic respiratory symptoms. Unfortunately, the overall quality of evidence was very low due to significant methodological weaknesses within the studies. Thus, there is insufficient evidence in the current literature to make a definitive statement regarding this possible association.

Background Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are common obstructive airway diseases with a substantial burden in terms of morbidity, mortality and costs. Smoking is the single most important risk factor for COPD, and is associated with incident asthma. It is important to know if the prevalence of asthma and COPD is increasing or decreasing in the population in order to effectively allocate health care resources. The definitions of these diseases have varied over time which makes it difficult to measure changes in prevalence. The preferred method is to estimate the prevalence with the same procedures and definitions based on cross-sectional population samples with identical age distributions in the same geographical area at different time points. Measurements of lung function (spirometry) are required to diagnose COPD, and spirometry is used to evaluate disease severity and progress of both asthma and COPD, where observed values are compared to reference values. The most commonly used reference values in Sweden are published during the mid 1980s, and there are few evaluations of how appropriate they are today based on Swedish population samples. The aim of the thesis was to estimate trends in the prevalence of asthma and COPD in relation to smoking habits, and to evaluate and estimate reference values for spirometry. Methods The project was based on population-based samples of adults from the Obstructive Lung Disease in Northern Sweden (OLIN) studies. Postal questionnaires were sent to large cohorts, recruited in 1992 (n=4851, 20-69 years), 1996 (n=7420, 20-74 years) and 2006 (n=6165, 20-69 years), respectively. The questionnaire included questions on respiratory symptoms and diseases, their comorbidities and several possible risk factors including smoking habits. Structured interviews and spirometry were performed in random samples of the responders to the 1992 and 2006 surveys, of which n=660 (in 1994) and n=623 (in 2009) were within identical age-spans (23-72 years). The trend in asthma prevalence was estimated by comparing the postal questionnaire surveys in 1996 and 2006, and the trend in COPD prevalence was estimated by comparing the samples participating in dynamic spirometry in 1994 and 2009, respectively. The prevalence of COPD was estimated based on two different definitions of COPD. Commonly used reference values for spirometry were evaluated based on randomly sampled healthy non-smokers defined in clinical examinations of participants in the 2006 postal questionnaire (n=501). The main focus of the evaluation was the global lung function initiative (GLI) reference values published in 2012, for which Z-scores and percent of predicted values were analysed. New sex-specific reference values for spirometry were estimated by linear regression, with age and height as predictors. These new OLIN reference values were also evaluated on a sample of healthy non-smokers identified in the population-based West Sweden Asthma Study. Results Although the prevalence of smoking decreased from 27.4% to 19.1%, p<0.001, between 1996 and 2006, the prevalence of physician-diagnosed asthma increased from 9.4% to 11.6%, p<0.001. The prevalence of symptoms common in asthma such as recurrent wheeze did not change significantly between the surveys or tended to decrease, while bronchitis symptoms such as cough and sputum production decreased significantly. The evaluation of the GLI reference values showed that the predicted values were significantly lower compared to the observed values in Norrbotten, which makes the percent of predicted too high. This was especially true for FVC percent predicted with a mean of 106%. In general, the deviations were more pronounced among women. New OLIN reference values valid for the Norrbotten sample were modelled and showed a high external validity when applied on the sample from western Sweden. The prevalence of moderate to severe COPD decreased substantially over the 15-year period between 1994 and 2009, regardless of definition. Conclusions In parallel with substantially decreased smoking habits in the population between 1996 and 2006, the prevalence of several airway symptoms decreased while the prevalence of physician-diagnosed asthma increased. These results suggest increased diagnostic activity for asthma, but may also suggest that the asthma prevalence has continued to increase. In contrast to asthma, the prevalence of COPD tended to decrease and moderate to severe COPD decreased substantially. The continuous decrease in smoking in Sweden during several decades prior to the study period is most likely contributing to these results. The evaluation of reference values showed that the GLI reference values were lower than the observed spirometric values in the population, especially for women, why the new up-to date reference values may be of importance for disease evaluation in epidemiology and in the health care as well.

Orientador: Irma de Godoy / Resumo: A Organização Mundial de Saúde (WHO) estima que haja cerca de 1100000 tabagistas, representando um terço da população mundial aproximadamente. As pesquisas mostram que o tabagismo é a principal causa prevenível de mortalidade nos países desenvolvidos. Os objetivos deste trabalho foram verificar a prevalência do hábito de fumar e identificar os sintomas respiratórios entre o corpo discente, docente e técnico-administrativo do Campus de Botucatu/Unesp. O estudo englobou as unidades do campus, discriminadas em Administração Geral e Unidades Universitárias (IB, FM, FMVZ e FCA), bem como os Cursos de Graduação relacionados (Biologia, Medicina, Enfermagem, Medicina Veterinária, Zootecnia, Engenharia Agronômica e Florestal). O instrumento utilizado para coleta dos dados foi o questionário da ATS-DLD, 78, adaptado à população local. Três mil e noventa indivíduos participaram da pesquisa, subdivididos em 1008 discentes, 302 docentes, 1673 servidores e 107 classificados como outros. A classificação da população de acordo com o hábito de fumar revelou 21,4% de fumantes, 15,9% de ex-fumantes e 62,7% de não fumantes. A variável sexo não apresentou diferença de proporção entre os fumantes. A maioria dos tabagistas consumia de meio a um maço diariamente, utilizava cigarro com filtro, tragava constantemente a fumaça e iniciou no hábito entre 11 e 21 anos. Os estados de estresse e as reuniões sociais foram as situações mais relacionadas ao tabagismo. Sintomas como tosse, catarro e chiado foram mais freqüentes entre os fumantes, ao passo que a falta de ar, entre os não fumantes. A maior proporção de tabagistas ocorreu entre indivíduos com graus de escolaridade primário e secundário incompleto, mais especificamente entre os servidores... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are about 1100 million smokers, representing approximately one third of the world population. Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable mortality in developed countries. This study was designed to verify the smoking habit prevalence and identify smoking-related respiratory symptoms among the students, teachers and technical-administrative employees of the Campus from Botucatu/UNESP. The study involved all Units of the Campus, including the Courses of Biology, Medicine, Nursing, Veterinary, Zootechny, Agronomy and Forestry Engineering. Modified ATS-DLD questionnaire, 78 was the instrument used to collect the data. Three thousand ninety individuals answered the questionnaire: 1008 students, 302 teachers, 1673 employees and 107 classified as others. According to the smoking habit 21,4% were smokers, 15,9% ex-smokers and 62,7% no-smokers. The proportion of smoking between males and females was not statiscally different. The majority of the smokers was between 11 and 21 years old when started the habit, consumed a half to one pack daily, used filter cigarette and inhaled the smoke. Stress and social meetings were the most probable situations to trigger the smoking. Symptoms as coughing, expectoration and wheezes were more frequent among the smokers and dyspnea, among no-smokers. The higher proportion of smokers occurred among individuals with lower degree of formal education, more specifically among the technical-administrative employees. Among undergraduates there was a tendency for a higher proportion of smokers... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Occupational skin and respiratory symptoms, and disease, are common problems. Workers can develop new disease or aggravate existing disease as a result of exposures at work. Many workers are exposed to chemicals that can cause both respiratory and skin responses and there is evidence that some workers experience symptoms in both systems. There is also evidence that skin exposure may lead to sensitization and the development of respiratory disease. There is very little research that has examined both airborne and skin exposures together with lung and skin outcomes. The purpose of this thesis was to further investigate the relationships between occupational exposures, skin symptoms and disease, and respiratory symptoms and disease. Four studies were undertaken to improve our understanding of these complex relationships. Results from a study of clinical patch test data determined that seven of the ten most common occupational contact allergens are also capable of causing occupational asthma and that these common occupational exposures may not be recognized as sensitizers in common reference materials. Exposure-response relationships for skin symptoms were modeled in bakery workers and auto body shop workers using historical data; significant exposure-response relationships were found for auto body workers. In two separate studies of concurrent skin and respiratory symptoms, workers did report concurrent skin and respiratory symptoms. In predictive models, subjects reporting a history of eczema were more likely to report concurrent skin and respiratory symptoms. Overall, the results from this thesis provide more evidence that the skin and respiratory systems are associated. This body of work suggests that: (1) several common occupational exposures can cause disease in both the skin and respiratory system; (2) a portion of workers report both skin and respiratory symptoms; and (3) exposure-response relationships do exist for skin symptoms, both work-related and non-work-related. Future studies need to gather detailed information about exposure and response in both systems in order to better determine the role of exposure(s) in the development of skin and respiratory symptoms. Improved understanding of these relationships will allow for more targeted and effective exposure prevention strategies and will ultimately reduce the burden of occupational disease.

Student Number : 0316118X - MPH research report - School of Public Health - Faculty of Health Sciences / Introduction: On the weekend of 16 – 17 December 1995, the community of Macassar was exposed to elevated levels of sulphur dioxide vapours (SO2) caused by a fire on a nearby stockpile for approximately 21.5 hours. It has been estimated that community members were exposed to levels as high as 200 parts per million (ppm) of this gas as some 15 000 tons of the sulphur stockpile ignited. This resulted in a toxic plume of SO2 being blown over the Macassar area by the prevailing wind. The aim of this study was to assess the environmental and host factors associated with persistent lower respiratory symptoms among residents of this community six years after being acutely exposed to elevated exposures of SO2 vapours. Materials and methods: A case-control study was conducted. The cases and controls were selected from adult residents who reported to the Macassar disaster project clinic for a health assessment in order to lodge a medico-legal claim. Survey instruments included a questionnaire, clinical examination and clinical record review by an expert panel. A case was defined as an adult resident who presented to the clinic for an examination with persistent (at year 1 and 6 after the disaster) lower respiratory symptoms. Controls were chosen from clinic attendees without lower respiratory symptoms at year 1 and 6. Environmental exposure was calculated by using the Industrial Source Complex Short Term Model (ISCST 3) to predict time-averaged concentrations at specified receptor locations. Multiple logistic regression was used to investigate the association between lower persistent respiratory symptoms, host and environmental factors (estimated concentration and duration of exposure to SO2). Results: A total of 76 cases and 180 controls were selected. The cases and controls were comparable with respect to age, gender, height and smoking status. The results indicated that a medical history of pulmonary tuberculosis at least one year prior to the fire (OR: 3.5, CI: 1.5-8.4) was significantly associated with having persistent lower respiratory symptoms. Furthermore, subjects with persistent lower respiratory symptoms were nine times more likely to report symptoms of tight chest (OR: 9.9; CI: 5.2-19.1), and twice as likely to report shortness of breath (OR: 2.0; CI: 1.0-4.1) at the time of the fire. None of the exposure metrics (total hours of exposure, cumulative exposure, peak exposure) were significantly associated with persistent lower respiratory symptoms. However, peak SO2 exposure estimated at hour 15 was significantly associated with persistent lower respiratory symptoms (OR: 1.0; CI: 1.0-1.1). Discussion: The results of this study are consistent with previous studies reporting lower respiratory tract symptoms after chemical exposure irrespective of age or smoking status. Furthermore, as in other studies respiratory health status was a significant factor in determining susceptibility to SO2 exposure. Various reports in the literature suggest that exposure > 20 ppm is associated with chronic respiratory symptoms. This however was not demonstrated in this study, using estimates of exposure calculated using the ISCST model suggesting possible exposure misclassification. “Self-selection” bias was an important limitation in this study, since the entire study population was self-referred and as such the study population was not randomly selected. Another limitation is the possibility that there may be potential recall bias operating since the fire incident happened six years ago; however this was considered unlikely as there was nondifferential reporting between cases and control. Self reported symptoms on the questionnaires might have been over-reported due to fear, anxiety and stress or secondary gain related to compensation issues. The lack of association between exposure variables and persistent asthma may have also been due to lack of power (small sample size), although this was thought to be a minor contributory factor. Conclusion: Host-related factors such as a previous history of pulmonary TB and acute asthma-like symptoms at the time of the fire were important predictors of persistent lower respiratory symptoms reported by residents 6 years after acute exposure to SO2 vapours emanating from a sulphur fire.

Submitted by Rosivalda Pereira (mrs.pereira@ufma.br) on 2017-05-11T20:58:32Z No. of bitstreams: 1 AndreAlmeida.pdf: 1209602 bytes, checksum: 5e9d024317045cd5c5e47ebea29cf505 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-05-11T20:58:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 AndreAlmeida.pdf: 1209602 bytes, checksum: 5e9d024317045cd5c5e47ebea29cf505 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-06-10 / Respiratory symptoms are an important cause of mothers seeking health services; We can characterize them according to the presence of one or more symptoms, such as coughing, wheezing, difficulty breathing, runny nose; the study aimed to examine the respiratory symptoms and related factors in children and 36 months. Crosssectional study a nested cohort "etiological factorsof preterm birth and perinatal factors consequences in child health: birth cohorts in two Brazilian cities" – BRISA (Brasilian Birth Cohort Studies) the sample used were the information of the second moment of the cohort, conducted with mothers and children, these 1 to 3 years, with total 3306. The results showed the mother's other children (50.03%), lives with up to 4 people at home (68.43%), have an income less than minimum salary (26.76%), do not have adequate schooling to the age (35.30%), children were breastfed exclusively until the sixth month of life (59.09%), were born of natural childbirth (51.16%), respiratory symptoms (46.52%), father/mother or brothers with a history of asthma (15.48%) parent or sibling with a history for rhinitis (30.01%). The relationship between the independente and dependent variables was estimated in univariate analysis Chi-square test with a significance level of 5%. There was statistical significance between the variable respiratory symptoms and the presence of other children (57.41%) p=0.0001, economic class C(53.39%) p=0.007, children born of natural childbirth p=0.005, asthma and family history (61.72%) p=0.0001, family history for rhinitis (57.42%) p=0.003, smokers in the home (58.29%) p=0.041 and adequate schooling mother (50.67%) p=< 0.0001. The study showed that the assessment of respiratory symptoms and related factors when are important instrument in the quest for better service the child and his family, the nurse should identify early those factors and be able to give attention and quality. / Os sintomas respiratórios constituem uma importante causa das mães procurarem os serviços de saúde, podem ser caracterizados de acordo com a presença de um ou mais sintomas, como: tosse, chiado no peito, dificuldade de respirar, coriza; o estudo teve como objetivo analisar os sintomas respiratórios e os fatores relacionados em crianças menores e 36 meses. Estudo transversal descritivo aninhado a uma coorte “Fatores etiológicos do nascimento pré-termo e consequências dos fatores perinatais na saúde da criança: coortes de nascimento em duas cidades brasileiras” - BRISA (Brasilian Birth Cohort Studies) os dados da amostra utilizada foram das informações do segundo momento da coorte, realizado com as mães e crianças, estas com idade entre 1 a 3 anos, total de 3306. Os resultados mostraram a mãe que tem outros filhos (50,03%), mora com até 4 pessoas no domicílio (68,43%), tem uma renda menor que um salário mínimo (26,76%), não apresentam escolaridade adequada para a idade (35,30%), as crianças foram amamentadas exclusivamente até o sexto mês de vida (59,09%), nasceram de parto normal (51,16%), apresentaram sintomas respiratórios (46,52%), pai/mãe ou irmãos com histórico de asma (15,48%) pai/mãe ou irmãos com histórico para rinite (30,01%). A relação entre as variáveis independentes e dependentes foi estimada na análise univariada pelo teste qui-quadrado com nível de significância de 5%. Houve significância estatistica entre a variavel sintomas respiratórios e presença de outros filhos (57,41%) p=<0,0001, classe econômica C (53,39%) p=0,007, crianças nascidas de parto normal p=0,005, histórico familiar para asma e (61,72%) p=<0,0001, histórico familiar para rinite (57,42%) p=0,003, fumantes no domicilio (58,29%) p=0,041 e a escolaridade adequada da mãe (50,67%) p=<0,0001. O estudo mostrou que a análise dos sintomas respiratórios e fatores quando relacionados são instrumento importante na busca por uma melhor atendimento a criança e sua família, o enfermeiro deve identificar precocemente esses fatores e estar capacitado para dar atenção direcionada e com qualidade

Occupational skin and respiratory symptoms, and disease, are common problems. Workers can develop new disease or aggravate existing disease as a result of exposures at work. Many workers are exposed to chemicals that can cause both respiratory and skin responses and there is evidence that some workers experience symptoms in both systems. There is also evidence that skin exposure may lead to sensitization and the development of respiratory disease. There is very little research that has examined both airborne and skin exposures together with lung and skin outcomes. The purpose of this thesis was to further investigate the relationships between occupational exposures, skin symptoms and disease, and respiratory symptoms and disease. Four studies were undertaken to improve our understanding of these complex relationships. Results from a study of clinical patch test data determined that seven of the ten most common occupational contact allergens are also capable of causing occupational asthma and that these common occupational exposures may not be recognized as sensitizers in common reference materials. Exposure-response relationships for skin symptoms were modeled in bakery workers and auto body shop workers using historical data; significant exposure-response relationships were found for auto body workers. In two separate studies of concurrent skin and respiratory symptoms, workers did report concurrent skin and respiratory symptoms. In predictive models, subjects reporting a history of eczema were more likely to report concurrent skin and respiratory symptoms. Overall, the results from this thesis provide more evidence that the skin and respiratory systems are associated. This body of work suggests that: (1) several common occupational exposures can cause disease in both the skin and respiratory system; (2) a portion of workers report both skin and respiratory symptoms; and (3) exposure-response relationships do exist for skin symptoms, both work-related and non-work-related. Future studies need to gather detailed information about exposure and response in both systems in order to better determine the role of exposure(s) in the development of skin and respiratory symptoms. Improved understanding of these relationships will allow for more targeted and effective exposure prevention strategies and will ultimately reduce the burden of occupational disease.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:27:19Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2001Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:56:12Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 luppi_chb_me_botfm.pdf: 931869 bytes, checksum: 6138aa9a682dc8848134f7e751a3da49 (MD5) / A Organização Mundial de Saúde (WHO) estima que haja cerca de 1100000 tabagistas, representando um terço da população mundial aproximadamente. As pesquisas mostram que o tabagismo é a principal causa prevenível de mortalidade nos países desenvolvidos. Os objetivos deste trabalho foram verificar a prevalência do hábito de fumar e identificar os sintomas respiratórios entre o corpo discente, docente e técnico-administrativo do Campus de Botucatu/Unesp. O estudo englobou as unidades do campus, discriminadas em Administração Geral e Unidades Universitárias (IB, FM, FMVZ e FCA), bem como os Cursos de Graduação relacionados (Biologia, Medicina, Enfermagem, Medicina Veterinária, Zootecnia, Engenharia Agronômica e Florestal). O instrumento utilizado para coleta dos dados foi o questionário da ATS-DLD, 78, adaptado à população local. Três mil e noventa indivíduos participaram da pesquisa, subdivididos em 1008 discentes, 302 docentes, 1673 servidores e 107 classificados como outros. A classificação da população de acordo com o hábito de fumar revelou 21,4% de fumantes, 15,9% de ex-fumantes e 62,7% de não fumantes. A variável sexo não apresentou diferença de proporção entre os fumantes. A maioria dos tabagistas consumia de meio a um maço diariamente, utilizava cigarro com filtro, tragava constantemente a fumaça e iniciou no hábito entre 11 e 21 anos. Os estados de estresse e as reuniões sociais foram as situações mais relacionadas ao tabagismo. Sintomas como tosse, catarro e chiado foram mais freqüentes entre os fumantes, ao passo que a falta de ar, entre os não fumantes. A maior proporção de tabagistas ocorreu entre indivíduos com graus de escolaridade primário e secundário incompleto, mais especificamente entre os servidores... / The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are about 1100 million smokers, representing approximately one third of the world population. Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable mortality in developed countries. This study was designed to verify the smoking habit prevalence and identify smoking-related respiratory symptoms among the students, teachers and technical-administrative employees of the Campus from Botucatu/UNESP. The study involved all Units of the Campus, including the Courses of Biology, Medicine, Nursing, Veterinary, Zootechny, Agronomy and Forestry Engineering. Modified ATS-DLD questionnaire, 78 was the instrument used to collect the data. Three thousand ninety individuals answered the questionnaire: 1008 students, 302 teachers, 1673 employees and 107 classified as others. According to the smoking habit 21,4% were smokers, 15,9% ex-smokers and 62,7% no-smokers. The proportion of smoking between males and females was not statiscally different. The majority of the smokers was between 11 and 21 years old when started the habit, consumed a half to one pack daily, used filter cigarette and inhaled the smoke. Stress and social meetings were the most probable situations to trigger the smoking. Symptoms as coughing, expectoration and wheezes were more frequent among the smokers and dyspnea, among no-smokers. The higher proportion of smokers occurred among individuals with lower degree of formal education, more specifically among the technical-administrative employees. Among undergraduates there was a tendency for a higher proportion of smokers... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Background A significant proportion of children are exposed to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) throughout the world. This is mainly because of exposure to parental smoking. It is unknown to what extent the negative effects of ETS on respiratory symptoms track from childhood into adulthood. Methods TESAOD (Tucson Epidemiologic Study of Airway Obstructive Disease) is a large population-based prospective study that was initiated in 1972. Participants were followed prospectively with questionnaires and pulmonary function tests (PFTs) completed about every two years in 12 follow-up surveys up to 1996. Skin prick tests and blood samples for IgE measurements were collected at surveys 1, 6, and 11. We identified subjects who entered the study as children (<15 years old) and were followed to adulthood (>18 years) during the study follow-up. Based on questionnaire data, active asthma, wheeze, cough, and chronic cough (cough for three consecutive months) were coded as never (never reported in childhood or adulthood), incident (never reported in childhood, but ≥ one positive report in adulthood), remittent (≥ one positive report in childhood, but not in adulthood), and persistent (≥ one positive report both in childhood and adulthood). PFTs measurements included forced expiratory volume in 1 second, forced vital capacity, and forced expiratory flow at 25-75%. Parent information on smoking status was collected simultaneously at child visits. ETS exposure status was assessed as “ever” or “never” between birth and 15 years. Results Information on parental ETS exposure in childhood and outcomes in adulthood was available for 444 non-Hispanic white participants (51.4% male) with mean age at initial survey of 7.7 years. Total mean follow-up time was 19.0 years (8.8 years in adulthood). Between birth and 15 years, 53.4% of children were exposed to ETS. After adjusting for sex, age at enrollment, years of follow-up, and personal smoking status (assessed at age 15 and above), combined parental ETS exposure in childhood was significantly associated with persistent wheeze (RR(adj) 1.9, p=0.026), persistent cough (RR(adj) 5.9, p<0.001), and persistent (RR(adj) 3.7, p=0.030) and incident chronic cough (RR(adj) 2.3, p=0.040). Paternal ETS exposure in childhood was associated with persistent wheeze (RR(adj) 2.3, p=0.002), persistent cough (RR(adj) 3.9, p<0.001), persistent (RR(adj) 4.8, p=0.004) and incident chronic cough (RR(adj) 2.2, p=0.031), and persistent asthma (RR(adj) 2.3, p=0.016). Maternal ETS exposure was associated with persistent (RR(adj) 1.9, p=0.029) and incident cough (RR(adj) 2.5, p=0.006). Maternal ETS exposure was associated with an increased percent predicted FVC in adulthood (coefficient, 3.75; p=0.019). No other effects on lung function were seen. There were no effects of ETS exposure on total serum IgE or allergic sensitization. ETS exposure was associated with respiratory symptoms in adulthood among both never and current smokers. Conclusions ETS exposure in childhood has long term health effects on lung function and respiratory symptoms. These effects do not appear to be IgE-mediated. ETS exposure, especially paternal ETS exposure, seems to influence the persistence of respiratory symptoms from childhood to adulthood and to affect women more than men. These effects are independent of personal smoking and also seen in never smokers. Both smoking mothers and fathers should be targeted when attempting to reduce ETS exposure among children.

Background: Dysfunctional breathing (DB) is a respiratory disorder involving an upper chest breathing pattern and respiratory symptoms that cannot be attributed to a medical diagnosis. Aim: The overall aim of this thesis was to describe patients with DB and investigate clinical outcomes after physiotherapy treatment. Methods: Study I was descriptive and comparative, that included 25 patients with DB and 25 age- and sex-matched patients with asthma. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL), anxiety, depression, sense of coherence, influence on daily life due to breathing problems, respiratory symptoms, emergency room visits and asthma medication were investigated. Study II, a 5-year follow-up study based on the same sample as study I (22 patients with DB, 23 patients with asthma), studied treatment outcomes after information and breathing retraining. Study III was descriptive and correlational (20 healthy subjects), investigating whether the Respiratory Movement Measuring Instrument (RMMI) can discriminate between different breathing patterns in varying body positions. Study III also studied correlations between respiratory movements and breathing volumes (12 healthy subjects). Study IV was a single-subject AB design with follow-ups. Self-registered patient-specific respiratory symptoms and respiratory-related activity limitations and breathing pattern (measured with the RMMI) were evaluated after an intervention consisting of information and breathing retraining in five patients with DB. Results: Patients with DB had lower HRQoL (SF-36): vitality (mean 47 vs. 62), social functioning (70 vs. 94) and role emotional (64 vs. 94) (p&lt;0.05) than patients with asthma. The DB group had a higher prevalence of anxiety (56% vs. 24%) and experienced more breathing problems than the asthma group. Patients with DB had made several emergency room visits and had been treated with asthma medication. At the 5-year follow-up, patients with DB showed improved HRQoL (SF-36): physical function 77 to 87 (p=0.04), decreased breathing problems and emergency room visits, and they were not treated with asthma medication. The RMMI can differentiate between different breathing patterns in different body positions. Strong correlations between respiratory movements and breathing volumes were observed (rs 0.86-1.00). The results in study IV indicate that patients with DB benefit from information and breathing retraining regarding decreased respiratory symptoms and activity limitations and improved breathing pattern.