title: Asthma symptom perception and obesity in children.
abstract: This study examined the relationship between obesity and asthma symptom perception in 200 youth with asthma. Repeated subjective and objective peak flow measurements were summarized using the Asthma Risk Grid (Klein et al., 2004), resulting in Accurate, Symptom Magnification and Danger Zone scores. Analyses were stratified by age and included ethnicity. For younger children, obesity was not significantly related to perception scores. For older children, a significant obesity-by-ethnicity interaction for Accurate Symptom Perception scores indicated that obese white children had lower accuracy than white nonobese children, while there was no difference for obese versus nonobese minority children. Obesity was also related to higher Symptom Magnification scores regardless of ethnicity for older children. These findings suggest that obesity may complicate asthma management by interfering with the ability to accurately perceive symptoms for some patients. More remains to be learned about the role of sociodemographic factors underlying this relationship.
authors: Bradley Hasbro Research Center/Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, 1 Hoppin Street, Providence, RI 02903, USA. sjkopel@lifespan.org
authors: Sheryl J
authors: SJ
authors: Kopel
authors: Natalie
authors: N
authors: Walders-Abramson
authors: Elizabeth L
authors: EL
authors: McQuaid
authors: Ronald
authors: R
authors: Seifer
authors: Daphne
authors: D
authors: Koinis-Mitchell
authors: Robert B
authors: RB
authors: Klein
authors: Marianne Z
authors: MZ
authors: Wamboldt
authors: Gregory K
authors: GK
authors: Fritz
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D010366:Peak Expiratory Flow Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D010465:Perception; D012720:Severity of Illness Index