Parental Report of Indoor Air Pollution Is Associated with Respiratory Morbidities in Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia

Objective: To determine the association between indoor air pollution and respiratory morbidities in children with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) recruited from the multicenter BPD Collaborative. Study design: A cross-sectional study was performed among participants <3 years old in the BPD Collaborative Outpatient Registry. Indoor air pollution was defined as any reported exposure to tobacco or marijuana smoke, electronic cigarette emissions, gas stoves, and/or wood stoves. Clinical data included acute care use and chronic respiratory symptoms in the past 4 weeks. Results: A total of 1011 participants born at a mean gestational age of 26.4 ± 2.2 weeks were included. Most (66.6%) had severe BPD. More than 40% of participants were exposed to ≥1 source of indoor air pollution. The odds of reporting an emergency department visit (OR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.18-2.45), antibiotic use (OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.12-3.21), or a systemic steroid course (OR, 2.18; 95% CI, 1.24-3.84) were significantly higher in participants reporting exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) compared with those without SHS exposure. Participants reporting exposure to air pollution (not including SHS) also had a significantly greater odds (OR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.08-2.03) of antibiotic use as well. Indoor air pollution exposure (including SHS) was not associated with chronic respiratory symptoms or rescue medication use. Conclusions: Exposure to indoor air pollution, especially SHS, was associated with acute respiratory morbidities, including emergency department visits, antibiotics for respiratory illnesses, and systemic steroid use.