Cohort Study | Early childhood respiratory infections linked to increased risk of premature respiratory disease mortality in adulthood
20 Mar, 2023 | 13:52h | UTCSummary: The study aimed to determine the link between lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) in early childhood and premature adult death from respiratory disease. The study used data from a nationally representative cohort recruited at birth in Great Britain in 1946 and followed participants across eight decades.
After adjusting for multiple markers of childhood social disadvantage and adult smoking, the study found that individuals who had an LRTI by age 2 years were 93% more likely to die prematurely from respiratory disease as adults than those who did not have early childhood LRTI, accounting for one-fifth of these deaths and an estimated 179,188 excess deaths across England and Wales between 1972 and 2019.
However, it is important to note that this observational study cannot establish causality, but rather suggests that early childhood LRTI is a marker of increased risk of respiratory-cause deaths later in life.
News Release: Respiratory disease in early childhood linked to higher risk of death for adults – Imperial College London
Commentaries:
Childhood bronchitis, pneumonia tied to premature respiratory death in adults – CIDRAP
Early childhood lower respiratory tract infection: a key determinant of premature adult respiratory mortality – The Lancet (free registration required)
Commentary from the author on Twitter (thread – click for more)
1/ Great to see the interest in our @TheLancet paper linking lower respiratory tract infections in early childhood to the risk of premature adult death from respiratory disease across Great Britain.
A🧵exploring our study (1/21)
Full paper link below:https://t.co/LlGQJC1wAP
— James P Allinson (@JPAllinson) March 11, 2023