A comparison of the prevalence of respiratory illness and non-specific health symptoms in two Victorian cities

Objective: To compare the prevalence of respiratory illness and non-specific health symptoms among adults and children aged 4-15 years living in Portland and Warrnambool, Victoria.Methods., A postal survey of 3,903 adults in Portland and Warrnambool systematically selected from the electoral roll was undertaken. Both an adult's and children's questionnaire were enclosed in the mailing to each adult. If there were children aged 4-15 years in the household, an adult was asked to complete a questionnaire for the child who would next celebrate a birthday. Questionnaires were returned by 2,111 adults (54%) and for 585 children.Results. No significant differences in the prevalence of self-reported asthma or wheeze were observed among adults or children residing in Portland and Warrnambool. The likelihood of itchy eyes, skin rash and stuffy nose was significantly higher in Portland adults and children compared with those in Warrnambool. Dry cough at night was increased among Portland children, but not significantly so.Conclusions., Higher rates of non-specific symptoms were observed in Portland but from a cross-sectional survey such as this, it is not possible to identify the cause of these higher rates. They may be related to environmental factors such as pollens or emissions from aluminium production, fertiliser production or bulk handling activities on the wharf, or they may be attributable to other factors such as response or recall bias.