Born to wheeze: Fall births linked to asthma

Children born in the four months preceding the peak of winter colds and flu have a greater chance of developing asthma than children born at other times of the year, according to research published today.

The study, by researchers at Vanderbilt University, analyzed birth data from more than 95,000 children and their mothers in Tennessee to look for a relationship between the peak of winter respiratory viruses and asthma symptoms. Having bronchitis during infancy was associated with an increased risk of childhood asthma. And for children born in the autumn, the risk was the greatest. Those children have a nearly 30% increased risk of developing asthma.

Researchers believe the relationship is due both to genetic causes that predispose some people to developing asthma, and exposure to winter viral infections at a young age. "If this association were due only to genetic factors, there would be a seasonal effect on infection but not on asthma," said the lead author of the study, Dr. Tina V. Hartert, in a news release.

Studies that use anti-viral vaccines or medications to prevent respiratory illness in infants should be explored to see if those efforts prevent asthma, she said. The study was published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

- Shari Roan

Photo credit: Bob Gwaltney/AP Photo/Evansville Courier and Press