The Asthma Control Test (ACT) as a predictor of GINA guideline-defined asthma control: analysis of a multinational cross-sectional survey.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate whether the Asthma Control Test (ACT) score is predictive of Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) guideline-defined classification levels of asthma control. The ACT is a validated, 5-item, patient-completed measure of asthma control with a recall period of four weeks.


METHODS
Cross-sectional survey comparing ACT score and GINA classification of asthma control among 2949 patients attending primary care physicians and specialists in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the UK, and the USA.


RESULTS
The area under the receiver operating characteristics curve for ACT score predicting GINA control was 0.84 (95% CI 0.82-0.85). An ACT score of <19 (not well-controlled asthma) correctly predicted GINA-defined partly controlled/uncontrolled asthma 94% of the time, while an ACT score of >20 predicted GINA-defined controlled asthma 51% of the time, with kappa statistic of 0.42, representing moderate agreement.


CONCLUSIONS
An ACT score <19 is useful for identifying patients with poorly controlled asthma as defined by GINA.
Thomas
Mike
M
Centre of Academic Primary Care, University of Aberdeen, Scotland, UK. mikethomas@doctors.org.uk
Kay
Stephen
S
Pike
James
J
Williams
Angela
A
Rosenzweig
Jacqueline R Carranza
JR
Hillyer
Elizabeth V
EV
Price
David
D
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005060:Europe; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010820:Physicians; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012372:ROC Curve; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents