title: Determination of alpha-1 antitrypsin level in patients with severe asthma.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This descriptive study aimed to determine the serum level of alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) in patients with severe asthma.
  
  
  METHODS
  The serum level of AAT was determined in 43 patients with severe asthma. Pulmonary function tests were performed and data were analyzed by SPPS version 19 software.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age of patients was 41±13.8 years (range 14 to 78 years). The AAT level was within the normal range (90-200 mg/dl) in 38 patients (88.4%) and less than normal in 2 patients (4.7%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  No association was observed between the serum level of AAT and lung function in severe persistent asthmatic patients. The prevalence of AAT deficiency was low in patients with severe persistent asthma. These results must be confirmed by further longitudinal investigations using larger cohort studies.
authors.affiliation: Research Center of Respiratory Diseases, Rasoule-Akram Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences.
authors.forename: Seyed Ali-Javad
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Mousavi
authors.affiliation: Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran-Iran.
authors.forename: Vida
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Mohammadzadeh
authors.affiliation: Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran-Iran.
authors.forename: Elham
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Loni
keywords: Alpha -1 antitrypsin; Severe asthma