Abstract Aim to answer the following research questions: (1) What is the prevalence of CC at preschool age, according to the school entry examination (SEE) and health professional assessment? (2) Which is the most common CC at preschool age? (3) Which health determinants (HD) are associated with CC? Subject and methods This cross-sectional study included all preschool children residing in Duesseldorf, Germany, who began school in summer 2024. CC were self-reported based on questionnaires and verified by health professionals during SEE. HD included neighbourhood deprivation, employment of caregivers, family status, daily time of the child’s media use, and physical activity participation. Poisson regression models were used with 95% confidence intervals. Results Among 4551 children, 15.03% exhibited CC; 13.64% had one, 1.23% two, and 0.15% three simultaneously. The most common CC were overweight and obesity, allergic eczema, and asthma. Overweight and obesity were associated with medium to very high neighbourhood deprivation, parental unemployment, single-parent family status, excessive media use, and no physical activity participation. Conclusion Fifteen percent of preschoolers had CC, mainly overweight, obesity, eczema, and asthma. SEE could help identify children at risk early and support prevention and parental education programmes.
Silva et al. (Wed,) studied this question.