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BackgroundGastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) has been reported to be significantly associated with chronic rhinosinusitis, but the strength of the association is still debated.AimsTo evaluate the strength of the association between gastritis/GERD and non-allergic rhinitis (NAR)/allergic rhinitis (AR)/sinusitis.MethodsWe investigated 2887 subjects aged 20–84 years, who underwent a clinical visit in seven Italian centres (Ancona, Palermo, Pavia, Terni, Sassari, Torino, Verona) within the study on Gene Environment Interactions in Respiratory Diseases, a population-based multicase-control study between 2008 and 2014. Subjects were asked if they had doctor-diagnosed “gastritis or stomach ulcer (confirmed by gastroscopy)” or “gastroesophageal reflux disease, hiatal hernia or esophagitis”. The association between NAR/AR/sinusitis and either gastritis or GERD was evaluated through relative risk ratios (RRR) by multinomial logistic regression.ResultsThe prevalence of gastritis/GERD increased from subjects without nasal disturbances (22.8% = 323/1414) to subjects with AR (25.8% = 152/590) and further to subjects with NAR (36.7% = 69/188) or sinusitis (39.9% = 276/691). When adjusting for centre, sex, age, education level, BMI, smoking habits and alcohol intake, the combination of gastritis and GERD was associated with a four-fold increase in the risk of NAR (RRR = 3.80, 95% CI 2.56–5.62) and sinusitis (RRR = 3.70, 2.62–5.23) with respect to controls, and with a much smaller increase in the risk of AR (RRR = 1.79, 1.37–2.35)..ConclusionThe study confirmed the association between gastritis/GERD and nasal disturbances, which is stronger for NAR and sinusitis than for AR.

Background To estimate the prevalence of respiratory symptoms in individuals with type 2 diabetes, as compared to the general population. Methods Between 2007 and 2010 the screening questionnaire of GEIRD (Gene Environment Interactions in Respiratory Diseases) study was administered to two samples of Verona general population, aged respectively 45-64 years and 65-84 years, and to a convenience sample of individuals with type 2 diabetes, consequently recruited at the local Diabetes Centre. Ninety-four and 165 people with type 2 diabetes, aged respectively 45-64 and 65-84 years, were compared with 676 and 591 subjects in the same age range from the general population. The influence of type 2 diabetes on respiratory symptoms was evaluated by logistic regression models, controlling for sex, age (45-54, 55-64, 65-74, 75-84 years), education level, smoking habits and heavy vehicle traffic exposure and adjusting standard errors of ORs for intra-sample correlation. Results Compared to the general population, dyspnoea limiting walking pace on level ground (grade 2 dyspnoea) was more frequently reported by people with type 2 diabetes, irrespective of age (p

The present study aims to prospectively assess the influence of respiratory disorders on smoking cessation and re-initiation. Three population-based Italian cohorts answered a questionnaire on respiratory health and smoking habits during 1998&ndash, 2001 and after a mean follow-up (SD) of 9.1 (0.8) years. Out of 1874 current smokers and 1166 ex-smokers at baseline, 965 (51.5%) and 735 (63.0%) reported their smoking status at follow-up. From current smokers, 312 had stopped smoking at follow-up, while 86 ex-smokers had resumed smoking. People reporting asthma at baseline were more likely to stop smoking than the other subjects (48.6% vs. 31.7%), while people reporting allergic rhinitis or chronic cough/phlegm had a higher probability to resume smoking (16.7% vs. 10.5% and 20.7% vs. 10.4%, respectively). In the multivariable logistic model, smoking relapse strongly decreased with increasing abstinence duration in people without chronic cough/phlegm (OR for &ge, 7.5 years vs. &lt, 7.5 years = 0.23, 95% CI 0.20&ndash, 0.27), while no effect was detected in people with chronic cough/phlegm (p for interaction = 0.039). Smoking cessation was enhanced in asthmatic subjects, while people with allergic rhinitis or chronic cough/phlegm were at higher risk to resume smoking. Chronic cough/phlegm blunted the decrease in smoking resumption associated with longer abstinence duration.

Background: There is considerable debate about the prevalence of e-cigarettes, and its association with tobacco smoking. Aims: To study the diffusion of e-cigarettes among nursing students in North-Eastern Italy and the association with tobacco smoking. Methods: In September 2015 a questionnaire on smoking habits, including e-cigarette, was administered to 2020 nursing students, attending courses organized by the University of Verona in 5 centers (Bolzano, Trento, Verona, Vicenza, Legnago) in North-Eastern Italy. 1474 (73%) students answered the questionnaire. Most responders (77.1%) were female and mean(SD) age was 23.2(4.2) years. Results: Nearly all students (94.7%) had heard about e-cigarettes. About one third (30.3%) had ever used e-cigarettes but only 2.1% in the last month. Very few (21/1018=2.1%) among those who had never used e-cigarettes, were willing to try them. Prevalence values were much higher for tobacco smoking: indeed 74.6% of responders reported to be ever smokers, and 40.6% to be current tobacco smokers, either occasional or regular. A strong association was observed between tobacco smoking and e-cigarette use: ever use of e-cigarettes was reported by 57.1% (337/590) of current tobacco smokers, by 18.7% (91/488) of past tobacco smokers and by 1.8% (6/340) of never smokers. Of note, only three students reported to have completely stopped smoking thanks to e-cigarette. Conclusion: Use of e-cigarettes seem to be rather rare among Italian nursing students, and mainly restricted to current smokers. E-cigarette does not seem useful to promote smoking cessation.

Background: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) has been reported to be significantly associated with chronic rhinosinusitis, but the strength of the association is still debated. Aims: To evaluate the strength of the association between gastritis/GERD and rhinitis/sinusitis/rhinosinusitis. Methods: We investigated 1924 subjects aged 20-84 years, who underwent a clinical visit in four Italian centres (Torino, Pavia, Verona, Sassari) within the study on Gene Environment Interactions in Respiratory Diseases, a population-based multicase-control study. Subjects were asked if they had doctor-diagnosed “gastritis or stomach ulcer (confirmed by gastroscopy)” or “gastroesophageal reflux disease, hiatal hernia or esophagitis”. The association between rhinitis/sinusitis/rhinosinusitis and either gastritis or GERD was evaluated through relative risk ratios (RRR) by multinomial logistic regression. Results: The prevalence of gastritis increased from subjects without nasal disturbances (14.8%=133/766) to subjects with rhinitis (19.9%=154/775) and further to subjects with sinusitis (29.4%=30/102) or rhinosinusitis (29.7%=73/246). A similar pattern was observed as regards GERD, which was 14.1% in controls and increased to 21.0%, 24.5%, 31.3% respectively in subjects with rhinitis, sinusitis, rhinosinusitis. When adjusting for centre, sex, age, BMI, education, physical activity, smoking habits and alcohol intake, the RRR of rhinosinusitis was more than doubled in subjects with gastritis (2.1, 95% CI 1.4-3.0) or GERD (2.3, 1.6-3.2), compared to controls. Conclusion: The study confirmed the association between gastritis/GERD and nasal disturbances, which was particularly strong when considering rhinosinusitis.