Dimensions of childhood adversity and prevalence of asthma
| Sample distribution of ACE dimensions | Asthma lifetime prevalence* (%) | Asthma current prevalence* (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parental marital discord† | |||
| No | 66 118 (78.78) | 8069 (12.20) | 5596 (8.62) |
| Yes | 17 350 (20.67) | 2909 (16.77) | 2063 (12.09) |
| Never married | 457 (0.54) | 90 (19.69) | 65 (14.51) |
| Total | 83 925 (100.00) | ||
| Stressful living conditions‡ | |||
| No | 55 290 (65.54) | 6151 (11.12) | 4209 (7.77) |
| Yes | 29 076 (34.46) | 4985 (17.14) | 3560 (12.41) |
| Total | 84 366 (100.00) | ||
| Experience of verbal abuse | |||
| No | 55 966 (67.38) | 6412 (11.46) | 4425 (8.05) |
| Yes | 27 096 (32.62) | 4543 (16.77) | 3210 (12.02) |
| Total | 83 062 (100.00) | ||
| Experiences of physical violence (on individual or parent)§ | |||
| No | 64 880 (77.22) | 7701 (11.87) | 5267 (8.27) |
| Yes | 19 143 (22.78) | 3388 (17.70) | 2469 (13.10) |
| Total | 84 023 (100.00) | ||
| Experiences of sexual abuse in childhood¶ | |||
| No | 73 475 (87.71) | 8936 (12.16) | 6141 (8.51) |
| Yes | 10 294 (12.29) | 2094 (20.34) | 1528 (15.28) |
| Total | 83 769 (100.00) | ||
*Differences were statistically significant with p<0.0001.
†Marital status of parents: were they divorced/separated?
‡Lived with someone who was depressed, mentally ill, suicidal, alcoholic, illegal drug user or had served time in prison.
§Experienced violence in the household (verbal or physical).
¶Experience of sexual abuse.
ACE, adverse childhood experience.