Background: To evaluate the prevalence of myopia in school students in Urumqi, China, and explore the influence of the interaction between parental myopia and poor reading and writing habits on myopia to identify the at-risk population and provide evidence to help school students avoid developing myopia. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 6,883 school students aged 7–20 years in Urumqi in December 2019. The Standard Eye Chart and mydriatic optometry were used to determine whether students had myopia. Falconer’s method was used to calculate the heritability of parental myopia. Multivariate unconditional logistic regression models were used to analyze the risk factors for myopia and the additive and multiplicative interaction of parental myopia and poor reading and writing habits. Results: After standardizing the age of the 6,883 students, the overall prevalence rate of myopia was 47.50 %. The heritability of parental myopia was 66.57 % for boys, 67.82 % for girls, 65.02 % for the Han group, and 52.71 % for other ethnicities. There were additive interactions between parental myopia and poor reading and writing habits; among them, parental myopia and poor eye habits when reading and writing (the distance between the eyes and book is less than 30 cm when reading and writing, fingers block the sight of one eye while holding the pen, and leaning one’s body when reading and writing; habit 1) increased the risk of myopia by 10.99 times (odds ratio [OR] = 10.99, 95 % confidence interval [CI] = 8.33–14.68), parental myopia and poor reading posture (reading while lying down, walking, or in the car; habit 2) increased the risk of myopia by 5.92 times (OR = 5.92, 95 % CI = 4.84–7.27). There was no multiplicative interaction between parental myopia and habit 1 or habit 2 (OR = 0.69, 95 % CI = 0.44–1.08; OR = 0.89, 95 % CI = 0.66–1.21, respectively). Conclusion: The prevalence of myopia among students in Urumqi, Xinjiang is relatively high. The risk of developing myopia is affected by parental myopia and poor reading and writing habits. In addition, parental myopia amplifies the harm caused by poor reading and writing habits, thereby increasing the risk of myopia. Students with parents who have myopia should be targeted during myopia prevention efforts.

Background: Pneumonia is a common disease worldwide in preschool children. Despite its large population size, China has had no comprehensive study of the national prevalence, risk factors, and management of pneumonia among preschool children. We therefore investigated the prevalence of pneumonia among preschool children in Chinese seven representative cities, and explore the possible risk factors of pneumonia on children, with a view to calling the world's attention to childhood pneumonia to reduce the prevalence of childhood pneumonia. Methods: Two group samples of 63,663 and 52,812 preschool children were recruited from 2011 and 2019 surveys, respectively. Which were derived from the cross-sectional China, Children, Homes, Health (CCHH) study using a multi-stage stratified sampling method. This survey was conducted in kindergartens in seven representative cities. Exclusion criteria were younger than 2 years old or older than 8 years old, non-permanent population, basic information such as gender, date of birth and breast feeding is incomplete. Pneumonia was determined on the basis of parents reported history of clearly diagnosed by the physician. All participants were assessed with a standard questionnaire. Risk factors for pneumonia, and association between pneumonia and other respiratory diseases were examined by multivariable-adjusted analyses done in all participants for whom data on the variables of interest were available. Disease management was evaluated by the parents’ reported history of physician diagnosis, longitudinal comparison of risk factors in 2011 and 2019. Results: In 2011 and 2019, 31,277 (16,152 boys and 15,125 girls) and 32,016 (16,621 boys and 15,395 girls) preschool children aged at 2–8 of permanent population completed the questionnaire, respectively, and were thus included in the final analysis. The findings showed that the age-adjusted prevalence of pneumonia in children was 32.7% in 2011 and 26.4% in 2019. In 2011, girls (odds ratio [OR] 0.91, 95%CI [confidence interval]0.87–0.96; p = 0.0002), rural (0.85, 0.73–0.99; p = 0.0387), duration of breastfeeding ≥ 6 months(0.83, 0.79–0.88; p < 0.0001), birth weight (g) ≥ 4000 (0.88, 0.80–0.97; p = 0.0125), frequency of putting bedding to sunshine (Often) (0.82, 0.71–0.94; p = 0.0049), cooking fuel type (electricity) (0.87, 0.80–0.94; p = 0.0005), indoor use air-conditioning (0.85, 0.80–0.90; p < 0.0001) were associated with a reduced risk of childhood pneumonia. Age (4–6) (1.11, 1.03–1.20; p = 0.0052), parental smoking (one) (1.12, 1.07–1.18; p < 0.0001), used antibiotics (2.71, 2.52–2.90; p < 0.0001), history of parental allergy (one and two) (1.21, 1.12–1.32; p < 0.0001 and 1.33, 1.04–1.69; p = 0.0203), indoor dampness (1.24, 1.15–1.33; p < 0.0001), home interior decoration (1.11, 1.04–1.19; p = 0.0013), Wall painting materials (Paint) (1.16, 1.04–1.29; p = 0.0084), flooring materials (Laminate / Composite wood) (1.08, 1.02–1.16; p = 0.0126), indoor heating mode(Central heating)(1.18, 1.07–1.30, p = 0.0090), asthma (2.38, 2.17–2.61; p < 0.0001), allergic rhinitis (1.36, 1.25–1.47; p < 0.0001), wheezing (1.64, 1.55–1.74; p < 0.0001) were associated with an elevated risk of childhood pneumonia; pneumonia was associated with an elevated risk of childhood asthma (2.53, 2.31–2.78; p < 0.0001), allergic rhinitis (1.41, 1.29–1.53; p < 0.0001) and wheezing (1.64, 1.55–1.74; p < 0.0001). In 2019, girls (0.92, 0.87–0.97; p = 0.0019), duration of breastfeeding ≥ 6 months (0.92, 0.87–0.97; p = 0.0031), used antibiotics (0.22, 0.21–0.24; p < 0.0001), cooking fuel type (Other) (0.40, 0.23–0.63; p = 0.0003), indoor use air-conditioning (0.89, 0.83–0.95; p = 0.0009) were associated with a reduced risk of childhood pneumonia. Urbanisation (Suburb) (1.10, 1.02–1.18; p = 0.0093), premature birth (1.29, 1.08–1.55; p = 0.0051), birth weight (g) < 2500 (1.17, 1.02–1.35; p = 0.0284), parental smoking (1.30, 1.23–1.38; p < 0.0001), history of parental asthma (One) (1.23, 1.03–1.46; p = 0.0202), history of parental allergy (one and two) (1.20, 1.13–1.27; p < 0.0001 and 1.22, 1.08–1.37; p = 0.0014), cooking fuel type (Coal) (1.58, 1.02–2.52; p = 0.0356), indoor dampness (1.16, 1.08–1.24; p < 0.0001), asthma (1.88, 1.64–2.15; p < 0.0001), allergic rhinitis (1.57, 1.45–1.69; p < 0.0001), wheezing (2.43, 2.20–2.68; p < 0.0001) were associated with an elevated risk of childhood pneumonia; pneumonia was associated with an elevated risk of childhood asthma (1.96, 1.72–2.25; p < 0.0001), allergic rhinitis (1.60, 1.48–1.73; p < 0.0001) and wheezing (2.49, 2.25–2.75; p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Pneumonia is prevalent among preschool children in China, and it affects other childhood respiratory diseases. Although the prevalence of pneumonia in Chinese children shows a decreasing trend in 2019 compared to 2011, a well-established management system is still needed to further reduce the prevalence of pneumonia and reduce the burden of disease in children.

Background: Eczema is a chronic inflammatory disease associated with impaired quality of life. We identified indoor environmental risk factors, to provide strong evidence for the prevention and control of eczema in preschool children. Methods: Using a cross-sectional study with stratified random cluster sampling, we conducted a self-administered questionnaire survey among 8153 parents of children aged 2–8 years in 60 kindergartens in six districts of Urumqi city during August 2019. Results: Among 8153 preschool children, 12.0% of the children have been diagnosed with eczema. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that caesarean section (odds ratio [OR] = 1.18, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.03–1.36), being an only child (OR = 1.36, 95% CI: 1.18–1.57), presence of mould or moisture in the mother’s home before pregnancy (OR = 1.53, 95% CI: 1.17–2.00), presence of flies or mosquitoes in the dwelling currently (OR = 1.31, 95% CI: 1.10–1.55), pets kept in the child’s home currently (OR = 1.23, 95% CI: 1.01–1.51), presence of pets during child’s first year (OR = 1.45, 95% CI: 1.14–1.85), and family history of eczema (OR = 3.53, 95% CI: 2.98–4.19) are the risk factors for the development of eczema, whereas ethnicity other than the Han Chinese (OR = 0.77, 95% CI: 0.61–0.96) is a protective factor for eczema. Conclusion: Preschool children in Urumqi are at a high risk of eczema, particularly those of the Han Chinese ethnicity. Parents should be attentive to the indoor living environment of children and take actions to reduce indoor humidity, pest control and elimination, and avoid raising pets to reduce the risk of development of eczema in children.

To investigate the prevalence and indoor environmental influencing factors of wheeze and asthma among preschool children in Urumqi, Xinjiang, China to provide a strong basis for prevention and control. In August 2019, a cross-sectional study involving 8153 preschool children was conducted in 60 kindergartens in Urumqi. The ALLHOME-2 questionnaire was used for childhood wheeze and asthma survey, and the dampness in buildings and health (DBH) questionnaire was used for the childhood home dwelling and living environment survey. Multivariate unconditional logistic regression was then used to analyze the potential influencing factors of childhood asthma and wheeze. The prevalence of wheeze and asthma in children was 4.7% and 2.0%, respectively. Multivariate unconditional logistic regression results suggested that ethnicity other than the Han Chinese (odds ratio (OR) 1.39, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05–1.84), caesarean section (OR 1.24, 95% CI 1.00–1.53), family history of asthma (OR 5.00, 95% CI 3.36–7.44), carpet or floor bedding at home (OR 1.40, 95% CI 1.05–1.87), purchasing new furniture in the mother’s residence during pregnancy (OR 1.58, 95% CI 1.06–2.36), pet keeping in the residence at aged 0–1 year (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.13–2.13), passive smoking by child in the current residence (OR 1.35, 95% CI 1.01–1.80), and having mould or hygroma in the child's residence at aged 0–1 year (OR 1.72, 95% CI 1.12–2.64) were risk factors for wheeze. In addition, Girls (OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.59–0.90) was a protective factor for wheeze. Caesarean section (OR 1.46, 95% CI 1.06–2.00), family history of asthma (OR 7.06, 95% CI 4.33–11.53), carpet or floor bedding at home (OR 2.20, 95% CI 1.50–3.23), and pet keeping in the residence at aged 0–1 year (OR 1.64, 95% CI 1.04–1.83) were risk factors for asthma, whereas Girls (OR 0.58, 95% CI 0.42–0.80) was a protective factor for asthma. This survey indicates that the purchase of new furniture, the placement of carpet or floor bedding in the child's residence, the pets keeping, room dampness or moldy phenomena, and passive smoking may all contribute to an elevated risk of wheeze or asthma in children.

Pediatric pneumonia presents a significant global health challenge, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to investigate the incidence of pneumonia in preschool children in Urumqi and its association with indoor environmental factors. This case-control study collected data from December 2018 to December 2019 on 1522 preschool children in Urumqi (779 boys and 743 girls) who were diagnosed with pneumonia by a physician. A control group of children who had never had pneumonia was matched in a 1:1 ratio based on gender, age, and ethnicity. Using questionnaires, data were collected on children's general characteristics, passive smoking, types of housing, flooring materials, and indoor dampness, analyzing potential factors associated with the incidence of pediatric pneumonia. Multivariate analysis revealed that cesarean birth (odds ratio [OR] = 1.27; 95 % confidence interval [95%CI] = 1.08–1.48), being an only child (OR = 1.32; 95%CI = 1.13–1.55), antibiotic treatment during the first year of life (OR = 2.51; 95%CI = 1.98–3.19), passive smoking during the mother's pregnancy (OR = 1.62; 95%CI = 1.24–2.13), living in multi-family apartment housing (OR = 1.64; 95%CI = 1.28–2.10) and other types of housing (OR = 1.47; 95%CI = 1.09–1.99), laminate flooring (OR = 1.31; 95%CI = 1.01–1.72), and tile/stone/cement flooring flooring (OR = 1.31; 95%CI = 1.06–1.61), and dampness in dwelling (during first year of mother's pregnancy) (OR = 1.30; 95%CI = 1.04–1.63) were risk factors for pediatric pneumonia. The use of fresh air filtration systems in children's residences (OR = 0.66; 95%CI = 0.50–0.86) was identified as a protective factor. This study underscores the importance of indoor environmental factors in the prevention of pediatric pneumonia. Public health strategies should consider these factors to reduce the incidence of pneumonia in children. Future research needs to be conducted over a broader geographical range and consider a more comprehensive range of factors influencing pediatric pneumonia.