Role of symptoms and lung function in determining asthma control in smokers with asthma.
BACKGROUND
Cigarette smoking in asthma increases the severity and accelerates the decline in lung function. The relative role of symptoms and lung function in determining asthma control in smokers with asthma is not known.


OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to compare asthma control in smokers vs never-smokers with asthma, using the validated Juniper asthma control questionnaire (ACQ), and assess if any difference was because of a particular symptom or the forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV(1)) value.


METHODS
This was a cross-sectional study of 134 asthmatics (74 never-smokers and 60 smokers) with >or=15% reversibility in FEV(1) after salbutamol. All subjects completed the ACQ, recording FEV(1) and asthma symptoms (night awakening, morning symptoms, dyspnoea, wheeze, activity limitation and use of reliever inhaler).


RESULTS
Compared with the never-smokers, smokers with asthma had significantly worse median (IQR) total asthma control score [1.6 (1.1-2.3) vs 2.8 (1.7-3.4); (P < 0.0001)] and in each of the six individual symptom question scores (P < 0.001), but no difference in FEV(1) levels (P = 0.908).


CONCLUSIONS
Asthma control is significantly worse in asthmatics who smoke compared with never-smokers, with all symptoms related to asthma control uniformly worse in smokers, independent of FEV(1).
Department of Respiratory Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
R
R
Chaudhuri
C
C
McSharry
A
A
McCoard
E
E
Livingston
E
E
Hothersall
M
M
Spears
J
J
Lafferty
N C
NC
Thomson
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D016535:Bronchial Hyperreactivity / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D005541:Forced Expiratory Volume; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011336:Probability; D011379:Prognosis; D012016:Reference Values; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000453:epidemiology; D013147:Spirometry; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents