Item | Questionnaire | 1992–1993 | 1998–1999 | Change | p-value |
Responses n | Postal | 3047 | 2803 | ||
Laboratory | 626 | 615 | |||
Wheezing ever | Postal | 42.6 | 45.8 | 3.2 | 0.014 |
Laboratory | 43.0 | 54.3 | 11.3 | <0.001 | |
Wheezing in last year | Laboratory | 29.8 | 36.4 | 6.6 | 0.013 |
Ever wheeze no cold | Postal | 29.6 | 33.7 | 4.1 | 0.001 |
Ever short of breath and wheeze | Postal | 22.8 | 28.0 | 5.2 | <0.001 |
Woken wheezing in last year | Postal | 9.0 | 12.4 | 3.4 | <0.001 |
Laboratory | 12.7 | 17.7 | 5.0 | 0.01 | |
Woken breathless in last year | Postal | 10.0 | 13.6 | 3.6 | <0.001 |
Laboratory | 8.2 | 8.7 | 0.5 | NS | |
Woken with chest tightness in last year | Postal | 19.7 | 23.9 | 4.2 | <0.001 |
Laboratory | 12.2 | 13.5 | 1.3 | NS | |
Woken coughing in last year | Postal | 30.9 | 37.8 | 6.9 | <0.001 |
Laboratory | 24.5 | 30.4 | 5.9 | 0.02 | |
Asthma attack in last year | Postal | 5.4 | 8.8 | 3.4 | <0.001 |
Laboratory | 7.5 | 10.2 | 2.7 | NS | |
Mean change in symptom prevalence | Postal | 4.3 | |||
Laboratory | 4.8 | ||||
Current asthma medication | Postal | 7.5 | 12.8 | 5.3 | <0.001 |
Laboratory | 8.3 | 10.7 | 2.4 | NS | |
Asthma ever diagnosed by doctor | Laboratory | 12.7 | 16.9 | 4.2 | 0.03 |
Overall mean change | Postal | 4.4 | |||
Laboratory | 4.4 | ||||
Hay fever | Postal | 28.3 | 34.4 | 6.1 | <0.001 |
Laboratory | 26.1 | 37.8 | 11.7 | <0.001 |
Data are present as % unless otherwise stated.
ns: nonsignificant