Unraveling the ecology of risks for early childhood asthma among ethnically diverse families in the southwest.

OBJECTIVES

We describe the prevalence of asthma risk factors within racial/ethnic and language groups of infants participating in an intervention study for reducing chronic asthma.

METHODS

Low-income children aged 9 to 24 months with 3 or more episodes of wheezing illness were enrolled. Baseline information included family and medical histories, allergic status, environmental exposures, emotional environment, and caregiver psychosocial resources.

RESULTS

Racial/ethnic and language groups-European Americans, African Americans, high-acculturated Hispanics, and low-acculturated Hispanics-showed different patterns of risk factors for childhood asthma, with low-acculturated Hispanics showing the most distinctive pattern.

CONCLUSIONS

Patterns of covariation of biological and psychosocial risk factors for childhood asthma were associated with racial/ethnic and language status among urban, low-income children.