title: Reduced airway function in early adulthood among subjects with wheezing disorder before two years of age.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare airway function in early adulthood in subjects with wheezing in infancy with age-matched controls and to analyze what accounts for a possible difference.
  
  
  METHODS
  Asthma development has been prospectively studied in 101 children hospitalized due to wheezing before the age of two. The cohort was re-investigated at age 17-20 years and tested with spirometry and for bronchial hyper-responsiveness and allergic sensitization. An age-matched population (n = 294) was used for comparison.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The cohort had a significantly lower FEV(1)/FVC ratio and MEF(50), both pre- and post-bronchodilation, compared with the controls, P < 0.01. The reduction in airway function was most evident in current asthmatic female subjects, but a reduced pre-bronchodilation FEV(1)/FVC ratio was also seen in symptom-free cohort subjects, P = 0.03. In the multivariate analysis, female gender was the most prominent independent risk factor for reduced airway function in early adulthood, pre-bronchodilation OR 4.0 (1.4-11.3) and post-bronchodilation OR 8.8 (1.8-42.0). In addition, a history of early wheezing, that is, belonging to the cohort, was an independent risk factor for reduced airway function pre-bronchodilation, OR 3.3 (1.3-8.7). Furthermore, there was an association between current bronchial hyper-responsiveness and an increased risk of reduced airway function post-bronchodilation, OR 7.3 (2.0-26.6).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Reduced airway function in early adulthood was found in subjects with wheezing early in life, compared with age-matched controls. The reduction was most prominent in females with current asthma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Göteborg University, Queen Silvia Children's Hospital, Göteborg, Sweden. emma.goksor@vgregion.se
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Goksör
authors.forename: Per M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Gustafsson
authors.forename: Bernt
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Alm
authors.forename: Mainor
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Amark
authors.forename: Göran
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wennergren
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016535:Bronchial Hyperreactivity / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005541:Forced Expiratory Volume; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008168:Lung / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008448:Maximal Expiratory Flow Rate; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012135:Respiratory Sounds / Q000503:physiopathology; D012307:Risk Factors; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013147:Spirometry; D013995:Time; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects; D014797:Vital Capacity
chemical_list: D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution