title: Plasma catecholamine responses in acute severe asthma.
abstract: Twenty patients presenting to an A&E department with acute severe asthma were studied. Despite clinically severe airway obstruction few had raised catecholamine levels. However several patients with impending respiratory arrest had markedly elevated catecholamine levels, and relationships are demonstrated between these levels and other measures of disease severity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Accident and Emergency Medicine, Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh.
authors.forename: T R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Parke
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Steedman
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Robertson
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Little
authors.forename: P F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Maycock
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001249:Asthma / Q000097:blood*; D002395:Catecholamines / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D002395:Catecholamines