Association of climatic factors with the 12 month period prevalence rates (in %) of symptoms of atopic eczema in children; results of the multilevel linear regression analyses
| Worldwide* | Western Europe | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13–14 years RC† (95% CI) | 6–7 years RC† (95% CI) | 13–14 years RC† (95% CI) | 6–7 years RC† (95% CI) | |
| *Adjusted for GNP. | ||||
| †Regression coefficient with 95% confidence interval. | ||||
| ‡All centres had ⩾1 month with mean relative humidity indoors below 50%. | ||||
| Latitude (degree) | 0.00 (−0.05; 0.04) | 0.05 (−0.01; 0.11) | 0.16 (0.01; 0.31) | 0.29 (0.07; 0.50) |
| Altitude (100 m) | 0.06 (−0.08; 0.19) | 0.03 (−0.18; 0.24) | 0.05 (−0.23; 0.34) | −0.04 (−0.51; 0.42) |
| Outdoor temperature | ||||
| Mean annual temperature (°C) | −0.01 (−0.09; 0.07) | −0.14 (−0.29; −0.01) | −0.29 (−0.55; −0.03) | −0.45 (−0.83; −0.08) |
| Annual variation in mean temperature (°C) | 0.18 (−0.36; 0.72) | 0.56 (−0.17; 1.29) | −0.16 (−1.93; 1.61) | −0.53 (−3.52; 2.45) |
| Lowest monthly mean temperature (°C) | −0.01 (−0.06; 0.03) | −0.08 (−0.15; −0.01) | −0.10 (−0.28; 0.07) | −0.17 (−0.48; 0.13) |
| Mean temperature of ⩾1 month below 0°C | 0.18 (−1.01; 1.36) | 1.35 (−1.11; 3.81) | 0.52 (−2.72; 3.75) | 1.99 (−2.02; 5.99) |
| Outdoor relative humidity | ||||
| Mean annual relative humidity (%) | −0.02 (−0.07; 0.02) | −0.03 (−0.08; 0.02) | 0.10 (0.00; 0.20) | 0.08 (−0.09; 0.24) |
| Annual variation in mean relative humidity (%) | 0.43 (−0.05; 0.91) | 0.38 (−0.03; 0.80) | −0.11 (−0.73; 0.52) | 0.17 (−0.89; 1.23) |
| Lowest monthly mean relative humidity (%) | −0.02 (−0.05; 0.01) | −0.02 (−0.05; 0.01) | 0.03 (−0.02; 0.08) | 0.01 (−0.07; 0.09) |
| Mean relative humidity of ⩾1 month below 50% | 0.77 (−0.35; 1.89) | 0.71 (−0.33; 1.76) | 0.03 (−1.79; 1.85) | −0.57 (−3.44; 2.29) |
| Indoor relative humidity at 20°C | ||||
| Mean annual relative humidity (%) | −0.01 (−0.03; 0.01) | −0.03 (−0.05; −0.01) | 0.00 (−0.10; 0.09) | −0.11 (−0.24; 0.03) |
| Annual variation in mean relative humidity (%) | −0.05 (−0.30; 0.20) | 0.12 (−0.07; 0.31) | −0.01 (−0.53; 0.50) | −0.19 (−0.99; 0.60) |
| Lowest monthly mean relative humidity (%) | 0.00 (−0.02; 0.02) | −0.02 (−0.04; 0.00) | −0.01 (−0.11; 0.10) | −0.11 (−0.27; 0.05) |
| Mean relative humidity of ⩾1 month below 50% | 0.79 (−0.28; 1.86) | 1.36 (0.19; 2.54) | ‡ | ‡ |