Prevalence of childhood asthma and allergies in Serbia and Montenegro.

BACKGROUND This is the first multi-center epidemiological study on the prevalence of childhood asthma in Serbia and Montenegro. The International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) phase 3 is a large epidemiological multinational and multicentric study on the prevalence of asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema in children. METHODS The 12-month period prevalence of asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema was calculated using an ISAAC phase 3 questionnaire for two age groups: 6-7 years old and 13-14 years old. RESULTS In the 13 485 children from five study centers who responded to the questionnaire, the prevalence for childhood asthma ranged from 2.5% to 9.8%, for allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (hay fever) from 4.6% to 21%, and for eczema from 8.2% to 17.2%. The prevalence of current wheezing was high in both age groups (16.5% and 12.4% respectively). CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of asthma is higher in 6-7 years old school children in the urban and largest cities of Belgrade and Nis, and in 13-14 years old children in Podgorica. The prevalence of asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema in the school children of Serbia and Montenegro seems similar to that of other countries in Central and South-Eastern Europe.