Comparison of child morbidity in regions of Ostrava, Czech Republic, with different degrees of pollution: a retrospective cohort study

Table 7 Prevalence of wheezing and allergies among children of Czech ethnicity stratified by region of residence

Region	Number and % of children				% of children with wheezing				Skin tests, number of tested, % positive
Region	% of children				% of children with wheezing				Skin tests, number of tested, % positive
	N	WH%	AE%	AR%	only WH	WH + AR + AE	WH + AE	WH + AR¹	N	Molds	Dog	Cat	Mites	Pollen²
O. south	677	10.0	15.2	9.0	29.4	23.5	29.4	41.2	104	5.8	14.4	14.4	25.0	45.2
O. east	170	37.1	35.3	24.1	6.3	42.9	36.5	57.1	67	7.7	1.0	1.0	9.6	29.8
O. center	289	10.7	13.8	9.3	46.4	3.0	19.4	32.3	76	17.3	4.8	5.8	27.9	35.9
O. west	268	13.1	17.5	8.2	42.9	17.1	28.6	32.6	47	7.7	4.8	3.8	11.5	21.2

Only children living in the four regions of Ostrava from birth to the age of 5 years are included. WH – wheezing, AE – atopic eczema, AR – allergic rhinitis (without differentiating between hay fever and year-round rhinitis). The prevalence of wheezing and allergies is significantly higher in Ostrava east (Kruskal Wallis test, P = 0.0001). Skin tests in children of Czech ethnicity - the percentages of positive tests in the children tested.
¹without regards to AE, ²child positive to any species.