Exploring the relevance and extent of small airways dysfunction in asthma (ATLANTIS): baseline data from a prospective cohort study

This study aimed to assess which combination of biomarkers, physiological tests, and imaging markers best measure the presence and extent of SAD in patients with asthma.MethodsIn this baseline assessment of a multinational prospective cohort study (the Assessment of Small Airways Involvement in Asthma [ATLANTIS] study), we recruited participants with and without asthma (defined as Global Initiative for Asthma severity stages 1–5) from general practices, the databases of chest physicians, and advertisements at 29 centres across nine countries (Brazil, China, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, the UK, the USA, and Canada). All participants were aged 18–65 years, and participants with asthma had received a clinical diagnosis of asthma more than 6 months ago that had been confirmed by a chest physician. This diagnosis required support by objective evidence at baseline or during the past 5 years, which could be: positive airway hyperresponsiveness to methacholine, positive reversibility (a change in FEV1 ≥12% and ≥200 mL within 30 min) after treatment with 400 μg of salbutamol in a metered-dose inhaler with or without a spacer, variability in peak expiratory flow of more than 20% (measured over 7 days), or documented reversibility after a cycle (eg, 4 weeks) of maintenance anti-asthma treatment. The inclusion criteria also required that patients had stable asthma on any previous regular asthma treatment (including so-called rescue β2-agonists alone) at a stable dose...
Source: The Lancet Respiratory Medicine - Category: Respiratory Medicine Source Type: research