Treatment improves quality of life in patients with poor perception of asthma.

AIM To find out whether symptom-free asthmatic patients with impaired lung function, improve with regard to quality of life after treatment adjustment. METHODS Forty-two primary care asthma patients without symptoms were divided into two groups: (A) with normal lung function (n=22); and (B) with impaired lung function (n=20). Lung function, symptoms and quality of life were assessed before and after a 3-month interval. In group B (but not in group A), treatment was adjusted on the first visit. RESULTS Quality of life was significantly worse in group B at visit 1 and was improved up to the same level as in group A after 3 months of treatment adjustment. Quality of life did not change in group A during the 3 months of observation. Lung function improved significantly only in group B but did not reach the same level as in group A. CONCLUSION Adjustment of therapy improves quality of life even in patients who do not experience symptoms. Asthma treatment should therefore be guided by both symptoms and lung function.

[1]  H. Leufkens,et al.  Assessing asthma management from interviews of patients and family physicians. , 1997, The Journal of asthma : official journal of the Association for the Care of Asthma.

[2]  D. Cullen,et al.  Clinical utility of measures of breathlessness. , 2002, Respiratory care.

[3]  P. Weiner,et al.  The risk of hospitalization and near-fatal and fatal asthma in relation to the perception of dyspnea. , 2002, Chest.

[4]  C M Higgs,et al.  Accuracy of perception of severity of asthma: patients treated in general practice. , 1993, BMJ.

[5]  G H Guyatt,et al.  Determining a minimal important change in a disease-specific Quality of Life Questionnaire. , 1994, Journal of clinical epidemiology.

[6]  E. R. Mcfadden,et al.  Acute bronchial asthma. Relations between clinical and physiologic manifestations. , 1973, The New England journal of medicine.

[7]  A. Apan,et al.  Perception of Bronchoconstriction in Elderly Asthmatics , 2001, The Journal of asthma : official journal of the Association for the Care of Asthma.

[8]  E. Juniper,et al.  The perception of breathlessness in asthma. , 2015, The American review of respiratory disease.

[9]  R. Mellins,et al.  Patient use of peak flow monitoring. , 1992, The American review of respiratory disease.

[10]  J. Malo,et al.  Compliance with and accuracy of daily self-assessment of peak expiratory flows (PEF) in asthmatic subjects over a three month period. , 1996, The European respiratory journal.

[11]  G. Guyatt,et al.  Measuring quality of life in asthma. , 1993, The American review of respiratory disease.

[12]  C. Salome,et al.  Perception of bronchodilation in subjects with asthma and smokers with airflow limitation , 1999, Respirology.

[13]  M. Mullee,et al.  Correlates of asthma morbidity in primary care. , 1992, BMJ.

[14]  R. Vestal,et al.  Reduced subjective awareness of bronchoconstriction provoked by methacholine in elderly asthmatic and normal subjects as measured on a simple awareness scale. , 1992, Thorax.

[15]  A. Rubinfeld,et al.  PERCEPTION OF ASTHMA , 1976, The Lancet.

[16]  P. Ehrs,et al.  Quality of life in primary care asthma. , 2001, Respiratory medicine.

[17]  L. Boulet,et al.  Compliance with peak expiratory flow monitoring in home management of asthma. , 1998, Chest.

[18]  C. Salome,et al.  Do subjects with asthma have greater perception of acute bronchoconstriction than smokers with airflow limitation? , 1999, Respirology.

[19]  A. Lockhart,et al.  Chronobiological study of the relationship between dyspnoea and airway obstruction in symptomatic asthmatic subjects. , 1989, Clinical science.

[20]  N. Masters.  Death from asthma in two regions of England , 1982 .

[21]  H. Hedenström,et al.  Reference values for lung function tests in men: regression equations with smoking variables. , 1986, Upsala journal of medical sciences.

[22]  H. Hedenström,et al.  Reference values for lung function tests in females. Regression equations with smoking variables. , 1985, Bulletin europeen de physiopathologie respiratoire.