Children born prematurely by caesarean section have an increased risk of subsequent hospitalization for asthma attacks

Children born prematurely by caesarean section have an increased risk of hospitalization for acute severe asthma between the ages of six and twelve risk, shows a study published in the "Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology."

Various studies have suggested that cesarean delivery alter the intestinal bacterial flora of infants, making it more sensitive to allergens and promoting the further development of asthma, remember Dr. Jason Debley and colleagues from the University of Washington in Seattle.

However, in most of these studies, the results have not been adjusted to take into account the potential influence of other factors, such as prematurity.

U.S. researchers have evaluated the impact of cesarean delivery on the risk of hospitalization for asthma in children born at term and in preterm infants. Their analysis included 2,028 children aged six to twelve years who were hospitalized at least once for asthma between 1987 and 1994 and 8292 children "controls" the same age as the young patients.

It thus appeared that the proportion of children born by caesarean section was significantly higher among children hospitalized for asthma than in the control group (16.5% against 13.2%). Caesarean section seems therefore linked to a slightly increased risk of hospitalization, but significant 20%.

However, the cluster analysis shows that this association remained significant in children born prematurely, with an increased risk of 90%, but not in children born at term.

In addition, the researchers did not reveal significant differences between children born by caesarean section with premature rupture of membranes and maternal those without breaking. However, the risk of intra-amniotic microbial colonization is high in case of premature rupture of membranes.

According to these results, so we can not reject the hygiene hypothesis, that children are less exposed to infectious agents (due to excessive hygiene, the overuse of antibiotics and routine immunization), plus the maturation of the immune system is directed towards the development of allergic-type responses, including asthma part.

For the authors, it remains to determine the genetic and environmental factors involved in the association between birth and childhood asthma, the authors conclude.