Methods: Cross-sectional study using a standardized and validated questionnaire (EISL: Estudio Internacional sobre Sibilancias en Lactantes) with questions: Has your baby had wheezing or whistling in the chest area or bronchitis in the first 12 months of life? Has your baby had 3 or more wheezing episodes in the first year of life? How often has your baby used antibiotics in the first year of life? How often has your baby used paracetamol in the first year of life? Parents of infants, ages 12-15 months that attended to Health Centers for routine immunization were interviewed between September/2009 to September/2010 (EISL Phase III). Risk was demonstrated using Odds ratio and CI 95%.
Results: One thousand and three parents participated in the survey and 19.8% of infants had recurrent wheezing starting at 6.1±3 months. The use of PCM was not related to the presence of recurrent wheezing [No PCM (OR=0.91; 95% CI: 0.38-2.19; p=0.83), PCM 1-3 times (OR=1.21; 95% CI: 0.77-1.91; p=0.4), PCM 4-6 times (OR=1.21; 95% CI: 0.77-1.9; p=0.41) and PCM≥7 times (OR=0.76; 95% CI: 0.51-1.13; p=0.17)], while more frequent use of ATB reduced the risk of recurrent wheezing in the first year of life [No ATB (OR=2.18; 95% CI: 1.35-3.51; p=0.001), ATB 1-3 times (OR=1.39; 95% CI: 0.93-2.07; p=0.1), ATB 4-6 times (OR=0.37; 95% CI: 0.22-0.62; p=0.001) and PCM≥7 times (OR=0.22; 95% CI: 0.07-0.66; p=0.001)].
Conclusions: The frequent use of ATB reduced the risk of recurrent wheezing in the first year of life unlike PCM that was not associated with recurrent wheezing in this study population.