PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Hanene Smadhi
AU  - Leila Elfekih
AU  - Othmen Neffeti
AU  - Hela Hassen
AU  - Ines Akrout Akrout
AU  - Dorra Greb
AU  - Tawaddod Khmis
AU  - Hajer Benabdelghaffar
AU  - Souraya Fenniche
AU  - Mohamed Lamine Megdiche
TI  - Asthma in the elderly: Clinical findings
DP  - 2013 Sep 01
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - P861
VI  - 42
IP  - Suppl 57
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/42/Suppl_57/P861.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/42/Suppl_57/P861.full
SO  - Eur Respir J2013 Sep 01; 42
AB  - Introduction:Asthma is a common disease throughout the world. Its prevalence had net increased in recent years. Often known as a disease of childhood and adolescence, asthma can occur at late age and make a challenge of its positive diagnosis and its therapeutic management.Aim: The aim of our work is to clarify the clinical, diagnostic and therapeutic difficulties of late asthma.Methods: This is a retrospective study including 50 patients during the period from January 1995 until January 2012 and in whom the diagnosis of asthma with a late start has been selected.Results: The mean age in our study was 58 years (range 42-86). 70% of patients were female. 11 patients (22%) were smokers and 20 women were postmenopausal. Oldness of asthma was at an average of 6 years with a range from 1 to 24 years. Symptoms were dominated by attacks of breathlessness, wheezing and spasmodic dry cough. The allergological bilan revealed allergy in 25 cases. Factors associated with late asthma were gastroesophageal reflux (26 patients), menopause (20 cases) and infectious sinusitis (10 patients). Inhaled corticosteroid treatment was prescribed in 49 patients, associated in 40 cases with a long duration action bronchodilator. Evolution was favorable with treatment in 18 cases with a control of all parameters, 22 patients were partially controlled, 8 patients were not controlled and 2 patients were lost to view.Conclusion: Although it was believed that asthma is predominantly a childhood disease, asthma in the elderly is not a rare disorder. Moreover, it is frequently underdiagnosed or misdiagnosed due to atypical presentation, age-related reduction of dyspnea perception, and associated comorbidities.