Woodsmoke exposure and risk for obstructive airways disease among women

Rodolfo J. Dennis, Dario Maldonado, Sandra Norman, Edgardo Baena, Gabriel Martinez

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch Articlepeer-review

75 Scopus citations

Abstract

Objective: To investigate if exposure to firewood smoke and other indoor pollutants is a potential risk factor for obstructive airways disease (OAD) among women in Bogota in whom cigarette smoking and other known risk factors may not be the most frequent. Design and setting: We conducted a hospital- based case-control study to identify risk factors for OAD among women in Bogota. An interview was conducted using a modified questionnaire recommended by the American Thoracic Society for epidemiologic studies. Patients: We compared 104 OAD cases with 104 controls matched by hospital and frequency matched by age. Analysis: The odds ratio (OR) was used as the basic statistic to evaluate risk. Multivariate analysis (MA) was conducted by the Mantel- Haenszel procedure and by logistic regression. Main results: Univariate analysis showed that tobacco use (OR=2.22; p<0.01), wood use for cooking (OR=3.43; p<0.001), passive smoking (OB=2.05; p=.0.01), and gasoline use for cooking (OR=0.52; p=0.02) were associated with OAD. Trends for years of tobacco use and years of wood cooking were present (p<0.05). After MA, variables remained significant except gasoline use. Conclusions: This study showed that among elderly women of low socioeconomic status in Bogota, woodsmoke exposure is associated with the development of OAD and may help explain around 50% of all OAD cases. The role of passive smoking remains to be clarified. This work may set the basis for interventional studies in similar settings.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)115-119
Number of pages5
JournalChest
Volume109
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 1996
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine
  • Critical Care and Intensive Care Medicine
  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine

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