PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - LK Josephs
AU  - I Gregg
AU  - ST Holgate
TI  - Does non-specific bronchial responsiveness indicate the severity of asthma?
AID  - 10.1183/09031936.93.03020220
DP  - 1990 Feb 01
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - 220--227
VI  - 3
IP  - 2
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/3/2/220.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/3/2/220.full
SO  - Eur Respir J1990 Feb 01; 3
AB  - It is difficult to analyse the relationship between bronchial responsiveness and the severity of asthma since each alone is difficult to assess. Asthma is a heterogeneous condition with many patterns of expression, and clinical methods used to assess its severity have their limitations. Problems also arise in interpreting the results of bronchial provocation tests and methodological differences make comparisons between studies difficult. The findings of both cross-sectional and longitudinal studies have shown a general relationship between the degree of responsiveness and the severity of asthma, but within subjects the relationship is weaker. A greater understanding must await increased knowledge of the mechanisms underlying asthma and the contribution which hyperresponsiveness makes to each of these.