| Summary: | Introduction
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) is still facing smoking as a complex problem to solve. Tobacco abuse has an economical as well as a trendy dimension, and children start smoking very early in life, often stimulated by their parents, friends or close environment and advertising. Although the relation of several lung diseases to smoking has been documented in numerous studies, there are no epidemiological data concerning the exact prevalence of smoking, and its relation to respiratory symptoms in this population in FYROM.
Material and Methods
In order to estimate the prevalence of smokers among adolescents, respiratory symptoms and allergic diseases in this group, we conducted a survey encompassing 1220 scholars, were asked to answer a questionnaire concerning smoking status, self-reported respiratory symptoms and history of allergic diseases.
Results
Prevalence of active smokers was 398 (32.6 %) and the overall prevalence of respiratory symptoms was 552 (46.3%). Coughing was present in 641 (55.5%), wheezing in 534 (43.7%), and chest tightness in 410 (33.6%) . In smokers, coughing was 289 (72.6%), wheezing 221 (55.5%), and chest tightness 213 (53.5%). The correlation between symptoms and smoking was 0.174 for cough and wheezing and 0.129 for chest tightness, at p<0.01, and between symptoms and non-smoking status the correlation was non-significant. The overall prevalence of allergic diseases was 252 (21.2%) The correlation between allergic diseases and smoking showed no statistical signification (p=0.236).
Conclusions
The results of our study show that more than one third of the adolescents in FYROM are active smokers, which has great impact on their respiratory and allergic status
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