Self-Reported Symptoms of Exercise-Induced Asthma in Korean National Team Athletes

Abstract

The prevalence of exercise-induced asthma (EIA) increases markedly in elite athletes. EIA has been extensively studied in Caucasian athletes, but little report has been published in Asian Athletes. PURPOSE: To investigate the prevalence of EIA symptoms, asthma diagnosis, and asthma medication using a validated questionnaire in Korean national team athletes by sex, and types of sports. METHODS: The study population was the year 2008 Korean national team athletes who were training at the Taeneung national training center. The questionnaire was composed of EIA symptoms (cough, wheezing, sputum production, chest tightness and difficulty of breathing), asthma diagnosis by a physician, and asthma medication. EIA symptoms were analyzed by sex and types of sports (record, ball and martial art) using chi-square test at p<0.05. RESULTS: Male (n=172; 24.2±4.3 yo) and female (n=117; 21.6±4.2 yo) athletes from 16 different summer sports completed the questionnaire. Cough (66.3%) and sputum production (62.1%) were often experienced while wheezing (30.9%) and difficulty of breathing (30.5%) were relatively not. None of EIA symptoms was self-reported by about 18% of all the participants, and all EIA symptoms were reported by 9.5%. Asthma diagnosis by a physician was reported 10.9% all the participants and use of asthma medication was only 6.7%. Cough, chest pain and difficulty of breathing were affected by sex. Negative response to cough was relatively less reported in female athletes and negative response to chest pain and difficulty of breathing was less reported in male athletes. Types of sports, especially martial art, affected the prevalence of cough and wheezing. Types of sports, especially martial art, affected the prevalence of cough and wheezing. CONCLUSIONS: Asthma prevalence in Korean athletes was similar to Caucasians. High prevalence of EIA symptoms was found in Korean athletes. This study also suggests sex and types of sports may influence the prevalence of EIA symptoms.