of Allergic Rhinitis in Female University Students with Socio-economic Factors and Markers of Estrogens Levels


Factor

Category

Allergy incidence

p-value

no

yes

n (%)

n (%)

Mother’s education

Vocational

74 (72.6)

28 (27.5)

NS

Secondary

178 (73.9)

63 (26.6)

University

224 (68.5)

103 (31.5)

Father’s education

Vocational

174 (72.2)

67 (27.8)

NS

Secondary

152 (73.1)

56 (26.9)

University

150 (67.9)

71 (32.1)

Number of siblings

0

72 (62.6)

43 (37.4)

<0.01

1

214 (69.5)

94 (30.5)

2

129 (74.6)

44 (25.4)

3 and more

61 (82.4)

13 (17.6)

Siblings

Lack

72 (62.6)

43 (37.4)

NS

Younger

162 (71.7)

64 (28.3)

Older

157 (72.7)

59 (27.3)

Younger and older

85 (74.6)

29 (25.4)

Place of living

Village

172 (80.8)

41 (19.3)

<0.001

Cities below 100,000 inhabitants

174 (73.4)

63 (26.6)

Cities above 100,000 inhabitants

130 (59.1)

90 (40.9)

Socio-economic status

Low

127 (79.9)

32 (20.1)

<0.001

Average

237 (71.4)

95 (28.6)

High

112 (62.2)

68 (37.8)



Another group of factors under consideration was related to estrogen levels. The first factor was the age at which the first menstruation occurred. The mean age at menarche for allergic students did not differ from that in students without allergies. The subjects were divided into three groups: early onset of puberty (age at menarche lower than the 25th centile), average onset of puberty (age at menarche ranging from the 25th to 75th centile), and late onset of puberty (age at menarche higher than the 75th centile). In the group of girls with early onset of adolescence slightly more subjects reported allergic rhinitis than in groups with the average or late onset of puberty, although the difference was not statistically significant. Also other factors under analysis which may be indicative of estrogen levels, such as WHR and menstrual cycle regularity, were not significantly correlated with the prevalence of allergic rhinitis (Table 2).


Table 2
Prevalence of allergy among female students in relation to age at menarche and obesity





































































Factor

Category

Allergy incidence

p-value

no

yes

n (%)

n (%)

Age at menarche

Early

62 (66.7)

31 (33.3)

NS

Average

366 (71.8)

144 (28.2)

Late

48 (71.6)

19 (28.4)

Menstrual cycles

regular

344 (71.2)

139 (28.8)

NS

irregular

132 (70.6)

55 (29.4)

Body mass index (kg/m2)

Underweight

65 (65.7)

34 (34.3)

NS

Correct

361 (72.1)

140 (27.9)

Overweight and obese

50 (71.4)

20 (28.6)

Waist circumference (cm)

≤80

394 (72.0)

153 (28.0)

NS

>80

50 (66.7)

25 (33.3)

The final stage of the analysis involved verifying the relationship between indicators of abnormal amount of adipose tissue and the prevalence of allergic rhinitis. No statistically significant differences in the incidence of allergic rhinitis between underweight, normal-weight, overweight, and obese students were reported; the same was also true of students with and without abdominal obesity (Table 2). Moreover, no significant differences in the mean values of BMI, waist circumference, and WHtR between students with and without allergies were found (Table 3).


Table 3
Anthropometric indices in relation to the incidence of allergy
































Anthropometric indices
 
Allergy incidence

p-value

no

yes

BMI (kg/m2)

$$ \overline{x} $$

21.3

21.5

NS

s

2.95

3.36

min-max

16.6–36.8

16.7–35.6
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Jul 2, 2016 | Posted by in RESPIRATORY | Comments Off on of Allergic Rhinitis in Female University Students with Socio-economic Factors and Markers of Estrogens Levels

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