Rischi attribuibili al fumo passivo in Pediatria di base

Summary Aim of the study is to evaluate the load of passive smoking at home on the incidence of common respiratory diseases in children. 464 children 0-10 years old were followed for a mean of 4 years to accrue 1821 child-years. The incidence of each disease was prospecti- vely recorded. Parents' smoke was evalued by a structured questionnaire during a direct interview. The children of parents smoking both more than 10 sigarettes/day, compared to children of non-smokers showed a measurable excess of influenza (45.7% versus 32%, O.R. 1.62), faringitis (60% versus 54%, O.R. 1.27), laringitis (17.1% versus 15.5%, O.R. 1.12), otitis (17.1% versus 11%, O.R. 1.67), asthma (14.3% versus 13%, O.R. 1.11). These differences, although often not-significant, due to type II error, are very similar to those ob- served in larger studies. Home passive smoking is associated with a moderate excess of upper respiratory tract infection in children: the excess work load to the pediatrician in charge is valued at about 125 visit/year. Malgrado la riduzione dell'abitudine al fumo nella popolazione generale, ancora la meta dei bambini ha uno o entrambi i genitori che fumano. Anche in una casistica relativamente piccola (quindi, di fatto, anche nella pratica del singolo pediatra) gli effetti di queste abitudini sulle malattie respiratorie, specialmente sull'otite e sulle malattie di tipo influenzale, sono ben ri- conoscibili.