%0 Journal Article
%T High body mass index is not associated with atopy in schoolchildren living in rural and urban areas of Ghana
%A Irene A Larbi
%A Kerstin Klipstein-Grobusch
%A Abena S Amoah
%A Benedicta B Obeng
%A Michael D Wilson
%A Maria Yazdanbakhsh
%A Daniel A Boakye
%J BMC Public Health
%D 2011
%I BioMed Central
%R 10.1186/1471-2458-11-469
%X Data on skin prick testing, anthropometric, parasitological, demographic and lifestyle information for 1,482 schoolchildren aged 6-15 years was collected. Atopy was defined as sensitization to at least one tested allergen whilst the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, Atlanta) growth reference charts were used in defining high BMI as BMI ¡Ý the 85th percentile. Logistic regression was performed to investigate the association between high BMI and atopy whilst adjusting for potential confounding factors.The following prevalences were observed for high BMI [Rural: 16%, Urban: 10.8%, p < 0.001] and atopy [Rural: 25.1%, Urban: 17.8%, p < 0.001]. High BMI was not associated with atopy; but an inverse association was observed between underweight and atopy [OR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.33-0.99]. Significant associations were also observed with male sex [Rural: OR: 1.49, 95% CI: 1.06-2.08; Urban: OR: 1.90, 95% CI: 1.30-2.79], and in the urban site with older age [OR: 1.76, 95% CI: 1.00-3.07], family history of asthma [OR: 1.58, 95% CI: 1.01-2.47] and occupational status of parent [OR: 0.33, 95% CI: 0.12-0.93]; whilst co-infection with intestinal parasites [OR: 2.47, 95% CI: 1.01-6.04] was associated with atopy in the rural site. After multivariate adjustment, male sex, older age and family history of asthma remained significant.In Ghanaian schoolchildren, high BMI was not associated with atopy. Further studies are warranted to clarify the relationship between body weight and atopy in children subjected to rapid life-style changes associated with urbanization of their environments.Allergic diseases are among the most prevalent chronic conditions in pediatric populations [1]. Although, the high infectious disease burden in Africa has resulted in the setting of health priorities around human immunodeficiency virus, tuberculosis and malaria; recent studies indicate that childhood allergies are an emerging health problem for Africa [2,3]. Moreover, the observed rural-urban gra
%U http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/11/469