CHARACTERISTICS OF CHILDREN WITH SECONDHAND SMOKING
Abstract: Passive smoking has
been known to be associated with the risks of several diseases. Children are a
group vulnerable to becoming passive smokers through adjacent adult smokers.
Objective: To describe the characteristics of children with secondhand
smoking.
Methods: This research is a descriptive study involving 39 subjects of
grade 4, 5, and 6 elementary school students. Inclusion criteria are having no
subjective complaints of respiratory disturbances in the last 1 month, not
smoking, living with parents/guardians/other family members that smoke inside
the house, and willing to become respondents. Meanwhile, exclusion criterion
was not returning the questionnaire. Samples were collected using purposive
sampling technique. This study was conducted at Banguntapan Public Elementary
School, Bantul in Agustus-September 2015. Instruments used in this study
included questionnaires and spirometer. Data were analyzed univariately using
frequency distribution.
Results: More than half of the respondents were ≥ 11 years of age, female
in gender, had parents that were ≥ 40 years of age, had parents that worked as
labors, lived with one smoking family member, had parents that had started
smoking at the age of < 24 years old, had parents that smoked ≥ 9 cigarettes
per day, had parents that smoke outside the house, had parents that are mild
smokers, and were not exposed to cigarette smoke. The highest level of
education of the respondents’ parents was mostly (43.6%) senior high school.
Subjective complaints of respiratory disturbances were reported by 74.4% of the
respondents.
Conclusion: Although no significant signs and symptoms of secondhand
smoking were found, children that lived with smoking family members still need
to be kept on watch. This is because more than half of the respondents of this
study were reporting complaints of respiratory disturbances. Therefore, it is
necessary to control the cigarette consumption of parents/ guardians,
especially of those who still smoke inside the house.
Keywords: Child Second Hand Smoke
Exposure to passive smoker
Author: Septian Emma Dwi
Jatmika
Journal Code: jpkedokterangg170274
