Urinary bisphenol A concentrations in relation to asthma in a sample of Egyptian children.

BACKGROUND: Bronchial asthma is one of the top disabling diseases in pediatrics. Limited research has been studied the association of the widely used plastic monomer bisphenol A (BPA) with childhood asthma.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the levels of urinary BPA in asthmatic and control children and to investigate the implication of BPA among other risk factors for the development of asthma.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This case-control study included 97 children (45 asthmatic and 52 healthy controls) aged 3-8 years. Asthmatic children were diagnosed according to Global initiative for asthma (GINA) guidelines. Sociodemographic factors were assessed and urinary levels of BPA were determined in spot urine samples using high-performance liquid chromatography. The contribution of BPA among predictors for developing asthma was studied in asthmatic children.

RESULTS: Median total urinary BPA levels were significantly higher in asthmatic children than in control group (1.56 ng/mL in asthmatic children compared to 0.790 ng/mL in control group, p = 0.001). Children who had total urinary BPA levels >1.3 ng/mL were more likely to be asthmatic (odds ratio: 2.84, 95% confidence interval 1.22-6.59, p = 0.015). Multiple logistic regression analysis for predictors of asthma showed the importance of higher levels of BPA (>1.3 ng/mL) as a more significant predictor than passive smoking ( p = 0.006 for BPA categories vs. p = 0.049 for passive smoking).

CONCLUSION: Association of higher levels of urinary BPA with the diagnosis of asthma in children may indicate the potential risk of BPA exposure in the precipitation of bronchial asthma. Further clinical and biochemical research are needed to clarify the proper mechanism explaining this association.