BACKGROUND Little is known about whether exposure to pets influences the association between hypertension and environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). The current study aims to examine the interaction of pet ownership on ETS exposure and the development of hypertension in children. METHODS From 2012 to 2013, a total of 9354 children, 5 to 17 years of age, were recruited from 62 schools in seven northeastern cities. BP in children was measured and hypertension was defined as an average diastolic blood pressure (DBP) or systolic blood pressure (SBP) at or above the 95th percentile for that child's age, sex, and height. Pet ownership in three different time periods (in utero, past 2 years, and currently) and ETS exposure data were collected from parents via a questionnaire. Two-level regressions were used for the data analyses. RESULTS The data show consistent, significant interactions between exposure to pets and effects from ETS. Children who were not exposed to pets experienced stronger effects from ETS on hypertension when compared to those exposed to pets, and the protective effect of pet ownership became stronger with a greater number of pets in the home. Exposure to in utero ETS was associated with hypertension [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 1.32, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.13-1.54] only for those children without pet exposure in utero but not for those with pets (aOR = 0.75; 95% CI: 0.49-1.15) (pinteraction < 0.05). Moreover, household dog ownership was related to significantly lower effects of current ETS on hypertension (aOR = 0.80, 95% CI: 0.61-1.05) compared with children without dogs (aOR = 1.26, 95% CI: 1.11-1.44) (pinteraction = 0.001). Interaction associations between ETS and pet ownership were more robust for girls than for boys and for younger than older children. CONCLUSION This study indicates an inverse relationship between pet ownership and ETS, potentially pointing to pet ownership as protecting against the development of hypertension in children.

中文翻译：

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子宫内和儿童期的宠物所有权减少了环境烟草烟雾暴露对儿童高血压的影响：一项基于大型人群的队列研究。

背景技术对宠物的接触是否会影响高血压与环境烟草烟雾（ETS）之间的关联还知之甚少。当前的研究旨在检查宠物所有权与ETS暴露和儿童高血压发展之间的相互作用。方法2012年至2013年，从东北七个城市的62所学校招募了9354名5至17岁的儿童。测量儿童的血压，并将高血压定义为该年龄，性别和身高在第95个百分位数或以上的平均舒张压（DBP）或收缩压（SBP）。通过问卷调查从父母那里收集了三个不同时间段（在子宫内，过去两年内和当前）的宠物所有权和ETS暴露数据。两级回归用于数据分析。结果数据显示，宠物接触与ETS产生的影响之间具有一致，显着的相互作用。与未接触宠物的孩子相比，未接触宠物的孩子对高血压的ETS效应更强，并且随着家中宠物数量的增加，拥有宠物的保护作用也会增强。子宫内ETS暴露与高血压有关[调整比值比（aOR）= 1.32，95％置信区间（CI）：1.13-1.54]仅适用于那些没有在子宫内接触宠物的孩子，而不是那些有宠物的孩子（aOR = 0.75 ； 95％CI：0.49-1.15）（交互作用<0.05）。此外，与没有狗的孩子（aOR = 1.26，95％CI：1.11-1.44）相比，家养狗所有权与当前ETS对高血压的影响（aOR = 0.80，95％CI：0.61-1.05）显着较低（互动= 0.001）。ETS和宠物拥有权之间的互动关联对女孩而言比对男孩更牢固，对年幼的孩子而言则更年轻。结论这项研究表明，宠物拥有权与ETS之间存在反比关系，这可能表明宠物拥有权可以预防儿童高血压的发展。