Abstract
Lipid pneumonia has been observed in infants exposed by inhalation of oil or butter applied into the nose or throat as part of an old custom. We performed a case-control study to test the hypothesis, that this ancient tradition may be a predisposing factor to bronchiectasis. A case group of 59 patients with bronchiectasis and three control groups — 46 patients with COPD, 32 asthmatics, and 71 healthy Saudis — were questioned about possible risk factors of bronchiectasis including nasal or oral application of oil/butter at infancy. The risk of witnessed exposure to this old folk remedy was significantly higher among the cases than the controls (OR=3.9 (1.7–8.8), (95% confidence interval)p<0.001). Application of oil or butter into the nasal or oral cavity of infants may be a risk factor for bronchiectasis.
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Døssing, M., Khan, J.H. Nasal or oral oil application on infants: A possible risk factor for adult bronchiectasis. Eur J Epidemiol 11, 141–144 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01719478
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01719478