Objective: To investigate the current prevalence of physician-diagnosed obstructive airway diseases by respiratory symptoms and by sex in Sweden and Finland. Method: In 2016, a postal questionnaire was answered by 34,072 randomly selected adults in four study areas: Västra Götaland and Norrbotten in Sweden, and Seinäjoki-Vaasa and Helsinki in Finland. Results: The prevalence of asthma symptoms was higher in Norrbotten (13.2%), Seinäjoki-Vaasa (14.8%) and Helsinki (14.4%) than in Västra Götaland (10.7%), and physician-diagnosed asthma was highest in Norrbotten (13.0%) and least in Västra Götaland (10.1%). Chronic productive cough was most common in the Finnish areas (7.7-8.2 % versus 6.3-6.7 %) while the prevalence of physician-diagnosed chronic bronchitis (CB) or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) varied between 1.7-2.7% in the four areas. Among individuals with respiratory symptoms, the prevalence of asthma was most common in Norrbotten, while a diagnosis of COPD or CB was most common in Västra Götaland and Seinäjoki-Vaasa. More women than men with respiratory symptoms reported a diagnosis of asthma in Sweden and Seinäjoki-Vaasa but there were no sex differences in Helsinki. In Sweden, more women than men with symptoms of cough or phlegm reported a diagnosis of CB or COPD, while in Finland the opposite was found. Conclusion: The prevalence of respiratory symptoms and corresponding diagnoses varied between and within the countries. The proportion reporting a diagnosis of obstructive airway disease among individuals with respiratory symptoms varied, indicating differences in diagnostic patterns both between areas and by sex.

目的：了解瑞典和芬兰目前通过呼吸道症状和性别诊断的阻塞性气道疾病的患病率。方法： 2016年，邮政问卷被四个研究区域中的34,072名随机选择的成年人回答：瑞典的VästraGötaland和Norrbotten，芬兰的Seinäjoki-Vaasa和赫尔辛基。结果：北博滕（13.2％），Seinäjoki-Vaasa（14.8％）和赫尔辛基（14.4％）的哮喘症状患病率比韦斯特拉·格塔兰（VästraGötaland）（10.7％）高，而医生诊断的哮喘在北博滕（13.0％）和至少在VästraGötaland（10.1％）。慢性咳嗽在芬兰地区最常见（7.7-8.2％比6.3-6.7％），而医生诊断的慢性支气管炎（CB）或慢性阻塞性肺疾病（COPD）的患病率在这四个地区之间为1.7-2.7％地区。在有呼吸道症状的个体中，哮喘患病率在北博滕最常见，而对COPD或CB的诊断在韦斯特拉·格塔兰（VästraGötaland）和Seinäjoki-Vaasa最常见。据报告，在瑞典和Seinäjoki-Vaasa市，患有呼吸道症状的女性多于男性，据诊断患有哮喘，但赫尔辛基没有性别差异。在瑞典，结论：呼吸症状的患病率和相应的诊断因国家和地区而异。报告患有呼吸道症状的个体中诊断为阻塞性气道疾病的比例各不相同，这表明不同地区和性别的诊断方式均存在差异。