Difference in clinical outcomes between early-onset and late-onset adult asthma
| Early-onset (n=191) | Late-onset (n=127) | Unadjusted estimates | Adjusted estimates† | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median [IQR] | Median [IQR] | RD (95% CI) | RD (95% CI) | |
| Asthma score‡ | 4 [2–6] | 4 [3–5] | −0.1 (−0.5 to 0.4) | 0.9 (−0.0 to 1.8) |
| N (%) | N (%) | RR (95% CI) | RR (95% CI) | |
| Wheeze with dyspnoea (last year)‡ | 109 (57) | 78 (61) | 0.93 (0.78 to 1.12) | 1.12 (0.88 to 1.43) |
| Woken up with chest tightness (last year)‡ | 98 (51) | 56 (44) | 1.16 (0.92 to 1.48) | 1.39 (1.01 to 1.90)* |
| Woken by shortness of breath (last year)‡ | 65 (34) | 36 (28) | 1.20 (0.85 to 1.69) | 1.53 (1.02 to 2.30)* |
| Dyspnoea (after exercise)‡ | 57 (30) | 52 (41) | 0.73 (0.54 to 0.99) | 0.88 (0.61 to 1.27) |
| Dyspnoea (at rest) | 17 (9) | 15 (12) | 0.75 (0.39 to 1.45) | 1.07 (0.51 to 2.21) |
| Asthma severity‡ | ||||
| Asymptomatic | 36 (22) | 20 (20) | – | – |
| Intermittent | 48 (30) | 21 (21) | 1.27 (0.60 to 2.69) | 1.82 (0.69 to 4.78) |
| Mild, persistent | 31 (19) | 26 (26) | 0.66 (0.31 to 1.41) | 0.98 (0.38 to 2.53) |
| Moderate, persistent | 31 (19) | 20 (20) | 0.86 (0.39 to 1.89) | 1.28 (0.44 to 3.68) |
| Severe, persistent | 16 (10) | 13 (13) | 0.68 (0.27 to 1.70) | 1.01 (0.34 to 2.95) |
| Asthma hospitalisation (last year) | 4 (2) | 0 (0) | – | – |
*p<0.05.
†Adjusted for gender, age, smoking status, social class, family history of obstructive lung disease, childhood lung infections.
‡Analysis performed using Poisson regression with robust error variance.
RD, rate difference; RR, risk ratio.
The bolded text identifies results reaching statistical significance (p<0.05).