Childhood infections, asthma and allergy trajectories, and chronic rhinosinusitis in middle age: A prospective cohort study across six decades

Abstract

Introduction: Evidence on the early life risk factors of adult CRS, and the history of asthma and allergies across the life course, is limited. Aim: To investigate relationships between respiratory infective/allergic conditions in childhood, and asthma and allergies across the life course and CRS in middle age. Methods: Data were from the population-based Tasmanian Longitudinal Health Study (TAHS) cohort, first studied in 1968 when aged 6–7 years (n = 8583) and serially followed into middle age (n = 3609). Using a well-accepted epidemiological definition, participants were assigned a CRS-severity subtype at age 53: no sinusitis/CRS (reference); past doctor diagnosis only; current symptoms wi..