title: Childhood asthma-predictive phenotype.
abstract: Wheezing is a fairly common symptom in early childhood, but only some of these toddlers will experience continued wheezing symptoms in later childhood. The definition of the asthma-predictive phenotype is in children with frequent, recurrent wheezing in early life who have risk factors associated with the continuation of asthma symptoms in later life. Several asthma-predictive phenotypes were developed retrospectively based on large, longitudinal cohort studies; however, it can be difficult to differentiate these phenotypes clinically as the expression of symptoms, and risk factors can change with time. Genetic, environmental, developmental, and host factors and their interactions may contribute to the development, severity, and persistence of the asthma phenotype over time. Key characteristics that distinguish the childhood asthma-predictive phenotype include the following: male sex; a history of wheezing, with lower respiratory tract infections; history of parental asthma; history of atopic dermatitis; eosinophilia; early sensitization to food or aeroallergens; or lower lung function in early life.
authors.affiliation: Pulmonary Medicine Division, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital, Cincinnati, Ohio. Electronic address: Theresa.Guilbert@cchmc.org.
authors.forename: Theresa W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Guilbert
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Evaluation Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, Pa.
authors.forename: David T
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Mauger
authors.affiliation: Allergy Division, Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wis.
authors.forename: Robert F
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Lemanske
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D000818:Animals; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000503:physiopathology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015897:Comorbidity; D005819:Genetic Markers; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000276:immunology / Q000503:physiopathology; D010641:Phenotype; D011379:Prognosis; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers
keywords: Asthma epidemiology childhood; Asthma phenotypes; Asthma risk; Biomarkers; Childhood asthma; Genetics; Review; Wheezing