Link between childhood asthma and mental health conditions.

Asthma and mental health conditions often coexist and studies support a link between the two disorders. Indeed, an increase in the incidence of depression and anxiety has been reported in children with asthma compared to those without asthma. Direction of causality in the relationship is unclear. Parental stress appears to be an important factor important in the development of infant wheezing. There is support for a working hypothesis, linking inner-city violence and the development of childhood asthma via pathways that include parental mental health conditions, parental nicotine addiction, environmental tobacco smoke, and Th2 skewing in infants. It is anticipated that a better understanding of the above relationships will lead to the development of new targeted treatment strategies for childhood asthma in the future.