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. 2020 Feb;31(2):124-132.
doi: 10.1111/pai.13134. Epub 2019 Nov 13.

Recurrent wheezing during the first 3 years of life in a birth cohort of moderate-to-late preterm infants

Antonio Moreno-Galdó  1   2 , Eduardo G Pérez-Yarza  3   4   5 , Octavio Ramilo  6 , Teresa Rubí  7 , Amparo Escribano  8 , Antonio Torres  9 , Olaia Sardón  3   5 , Concepción Oliva  10 , Guadalupe Pérez  11 , Isidoro Cortell  12 , Sandra Rovira-Amigo  1 , Maria D Pastor-Vivero  13 , Javier Pérez-Frías  14   15 , Valle Velasco  16 , Javier Torres  17 , Joan Figuerola  18 , María Isabel Barrio  19 , Gloria García-Hernández  20 , Asunción Mejías  6   15 ; SAREPREM 3235 investigators
Collaborators, Affiliations

Recurrent wheezing during the first 3 years of life in a birth cohort of moderate-to-late preterm infants

Antonio Moreno-Galdó et al. Pediatr Allergy Immunol. 2020 Feb.

Abstract

Background: Data addressing short- and long-term respiratory morbidity in moderate-late preterm infants are limited. We aim to determine the incidence of recurrent wheezing and associated risk and protective factors in these infants during the first 3 years of life.

Methods: Prospective, multicenter birth cohort study of infants born at 32+0 to 35+0 weeks' gestation and followed for 3 years to assess the incidence of physician-diagnosed recurrent wheezing. Allergen sensitization and pulmonary function were also studied. We used multivariate mixed-effects models to identify risk factors associated with recurrent wheezing.

Results: A total of 977 preterm infants were enrolled. Rates of recurrent wheezing during year (Y)1 and Y2 were similar (19%) but decreased to 13.3% in Y3. Related hospitalizations significantly declined from 6.3% in Y1 to 0.75% in Y3. Independent risk factors for recurrent wheezing during Y2 and Y3 included the following: day care attendance, acetaminophen use during pregnancy, and need for mechanical ventilation. Atopic dermatitis on Y2 and male sex on Y3 were also independently associated with recurrent wheezing. Palivizumab prophylaxis for RSV during the first year of life decreased the risk or recurrent wheezing on Y3. While there were no differences in rates of allergen sensitization, pulmonary function tests (FEV0.5 ) were significantly lower in children who developed recurrent wheezing.

Conclusions: In moderate-to-late premature infants, respiratory symptoms were associated with lung morbidity persisted during the first 3 years of life and were associated with abnormal pulmonary function tests. Only anti-RSV prophylaxis exerted a protective effect in the development of recurrent wheezing.

Keywords: allergen sensitization; asthma; birth cohort; lung function; preterm birth; recurrent wheezing; risk factors.

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References

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