Abstract

Peculiarities of the course of bronchial asthma (BA) in adolescents from the standpoint of the influence of age and gender on it cannot be considered fully studied as yet. Materials and methods used: the data were obtained from 367 patients’ records of atopic BA aged 10 to 17 years old (73,6% boys) who were treated for atopic BA at the Nizhny Novgorod City Children’s Clinical Hospital No. 1 (Nizhny Novgorod, Russia). The patients were divided into two age groups: early adolescence (EA, 10 to 14 y/o, 239 patients) and middle adolescence (MA, 15 to 17 y/o, 128). All patients underwent spirometric studies with an assessment of the forced vital capacity of the lungs (FVC), the ratio of forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) to FVC (FEV1/FVC), the average volume velocity of forced exhalation, averaged in the exhalation interval from 25 to 75% FVC (FEF25-75). Spirometric parameters were evaluated using the z-criteria of the Global Lung Initiative. Results: in the general group of patients, the zFVC index was statistically significantly lower in MA compared to EA (p=0,001), and the indicators of zFEV1/FVC and zFEF25-75 were statistically significantly higher in MA (p=0,020, p=0,022 respectively). In the cohort of boys, there were similar differences in spirometric parameters in EA and MA (p=0,009, p=0,002, p=0,002, respectively). In girls, the values of FVC in MA were statistically significantly lower than in EA (p=0,0310, as in the general cohort and the cohort of boys). At the same time, in girls, the indicators of zFEV1/FVC and zFEF25-75, reflecting bronchial permeability, were slightly lower in MA than in EA, but the differences were not statistically significant. Conclusion: in boys, but not in girls, the spirometric parameters reflecting bronchial patency in MA were statistically significantly higher than in EA. At the same time, in both boys and girls, the indicators of FVC decrease in MA compared to EA, remaining above the population median values of indicators.

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