PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Irina Strambu
AU  - Ileana Stoicescu
AU  - Diana Ionita
AU  - Daniela Dospinoiu
AU  - Felicia Cojocaru
AU  - Camelia Nita
AU  - Alina Croitoru
AU  - Madalina Burecu
AU  - Carmen Stroescu
TI  - Methacoline challenge response in controlled asthma and correlations with other disease characteristics
DP  - 2012 Sep 01
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - P3427
VI  - 40
IP  - Suppl 56
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/Suppl_56/P3427.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/Suppl_56/P3427.full
SO  - Eur Respir J2012 Sep 01; 40
AB  - Aim: To assess methacoline challenge response in patients with controlled asthma and its correlations with other asthma characteristics.Subjects and methods: Patients with controlled asthma performed methacoline challenge (MC) using ATS Guidelines (1999). Bronchial hyper-reactivity was considered severe for PC20 <0.125 mg/mL and moderate for 0.125-2 mg/mL. Spirometry, exhaled nitric oxide (NIOX) and blood eosinophils measurements were performed the same day prior to MC. A bronchodilator test was performed the next day and dFEV1 was calculated (difference and % from the baseline FEV1 value). The allergic rhinitis history was noted. Correlations between parameters were calculated.Results: Twenty-two patients were evaluated: mean age 47, 7 males.The mean PC20 was 0.558 mg/mL (range 0.003-2). Nine patients had severe and 13 moderate hyper-reactivity.Mean baseline FEV1 was 84%, mean NIOX 35 ppb (range 5-108), mean dFEV1 0.46 L (0.04-1.35) and 23% (3-63), blood eosinophils 234/mmc (30-840) and 3% (0.6-9.4). Ten of the patients had allergic rhinitis.The PC20 values correlated with dFEV1 post-bronchodilator value (r=-0.429, p=0.046), but with no other parameters studied. The severity of hyper-reactivity was only associated with the dFEV1 values (p=0.017).The methacoline response was similar regardless the presence of allergic rhinitis.Conclusions: Moderate/severe bronchial hyper-reactivity was seen in our patients with asthma considered controlled when using GINA 2011 criteria. NIOX values, eosinophil blood counts and bronchodilator response showed high variability. None of the studied characteristics correlated with the methacoline response, except for the bronchodilator response.