Clinical characteristics of asthmatics susceptible to acute exacerbation by environmental triggers in Cohort for Reality and Evolution of Adult Asthma in Korea (COREA)

Abstract

Background: Patients with asthma is prone to experience recurrent exacerbation of symptoms especially when they are exposed to environmental triggers. But it is not well defined what kind of clinical characteristics is associated with this predisposition. Methods The Cohort for Reality and Evolution of Adult Asthma in Korea (COREA) study is a prospective, observational multi-center study and will be conducted for nine years (2005-2013) in Korea. Cross sectional data of baseline clinical characteristics were compared between asthmatics susceptible to asthma exacerbation by environmental triggers and asthmatics tolerable to those triggers based on self reported questionnaire at the time of enrollment. Results Common cold (22.9%) was most frequent trigger followed by polluted or dusty air (16.6%), second hand smoke (11.5%), emotional stress (9.5%), animal (3.8%), and drug (1.0%) in descending order. The environmental triggers-sensitive asthmatics (TSA) showed female dominance (60.2% vs. 50.5%, P = 0.027) and higher prevalence of rhinosinusitis (63.2% vs. 53.6%, P = 0.041) than environmental triggers-tolerable asthmatics (TTA), while there was no significant difference in obesity, duration of symptom, atopic status, and lung function. More patients among TSA reported aggravation of asthmatic symptoms after moving to current house (16.1% vs. 3.9%, P = 0.001) and TSA had been living in the current house for significantly less time than TTA (P = 0.002). Conclusion Female sex, having rhinosinusitis, moving into a new house was significantly associated with the susceptibility to asthma exacerbation by environmental triggers.