Article Text
Abstract
Background: There is substantial evidence for an association between symptoms of asthma and overweight or obesity. However, a study that reported no association between bronchial responsiveness (BHR) and body mass index (BMI) suggested that the relation of symptoms to obesity was due to increased diagnosis of asthma. The relation of BHR to BMI was therefore investigated in a large multicentre study.
Methods: Data were obtained for 11 277 participants in stage II of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS). BHR to methacholine was analysed in relation to BMI adjusted for a number of factors known to be associated with BHR, including baseline lung function and allergen sensitisation, and combined across 34 centres using random effects meta-analysis.
Results: BHR increased with increasing BMI in men (ECRHS slope changed by –0.027 for each unit increase in BMI, 95% confidence interval –0.044 to –0.010, p=0.002), but the relation in women was weak (–0.014, 95% CI –0.033 to 0.005, p=0.14). There was no evidence for an interaction of sex with BMI (p=0.41).
Conclusions: BHR is related to BMI in the ECRHS. This suggests that the association is not due to greater diagnosis or perception of symptoms in obese people compared with those of normal weight. The data do not support the finding by some studies of a relation between asthma and obesity in women but not in men.
- bronchial hyperreactivity
- body mass index
- obesity
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Footnotes
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Financial support: Allen and Hanbury’s, Australia; Belgian Science Policy Office, National Fund for Scientific Research; Ministére de la Santé, Glaxo France, Insitut Pneumologique d’Aquitaine, Contrat de Plan Etat-Région Languedoc-Rousillon, CNMATS, CNMRT (90MR/10, 91AF/6), Ministre delegué de la santé, RNSP, France; GSF, and the Bundesminister für Forschung und Technologie, Bonn, Germany; The Greek Secretary General of Research and Technology, Fisons, Astra and Boehringer-Ingelheim; Bombay Hospital Trust, India; Ministero dell’Università e della Ricerca Scientifica e Tecnologica, CNR, Regione Veneto grant RSF n. 381/05.93, Italy; Asthma Foundation of New Zealand, Lotteries Grant Board, Health Research Council of New Zealand Norwegian Research Council project no. 101422/310; Glaxo Farmacêutica Lda, Sandoz, Portugal; Ministero Sanidad y Consumo FIS (grants #91/0016060/00E-05E and #93/0393), and grants from Hospital General de Albacete, Hospital General Juan Ramón Jiménenz, Consejeria de Sanidad Principado de Asturias, Spain; the Swedish Medical Research Council, the Swedish Heart Lung Foundation, the Swedish Association against Asthma and Allergy; Swiss National Science Foundation grant 4026-28099; National Asthma Campaign, British Lung Foundation, Department of Health, South Thames Regional Health Authority, UK; United States Department of Health, Education and Welfare Public Health Service (grant #2 S07 RR05521-28).
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Coordinating Centre (London): P Burney, S Chinn, C Luczynska, D Jarvis, E Lai.
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Project Management Group: P Burney (project leader), S Chinn, C Luczynska, D Jarvis, P Vermeire (Antwerp), H Kesteloot (Leuven), J Bousquet (Montpellier), D Nowak (Hamburg), the late J Prichard (Dublin), R de Marco (Verona), B Rijcken (Groningen), J M Anto (Barcelona), J Alves (Oporto), G Boman (Uppsala), N Nielsen (Copenhagen), P Paoletti (Pisa).
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Participating centres: Austria: W Popp (Vienna); Australia: M Abramson, J Kutin (Melbourne); Belgium: P Vermeire, F van Bastelaer (Antwerp South, Antwerp Central); France: J Bousquet, J Knani (Montpellier), F Neukirch, R Liard (Paris), I Pin, C Pison (Grenoble), A Taytard (Bordeaux); Germany: H Magnussen, D Nowak (Hamburg), H-E Wichmann, J Heinrich (GSF Institute of Epidemiology, Erfurt); Greece: N Papageorgiou, P Avarlis, M Gaga, C Marossis (Athens); Iceland: T Gislason, D Gislason (Reykjavik); Ireland: J Prichard, S Allwright, D MacLeod (Dublin); Italy: M Bugiani, C Bucca, C Romano (Turin), R de Marco Lo Cascio, C Campello (Verona), A Marinoni, I Cerveri, L Casali (Pavia); The Netherlands: B Rijcken, A Kremer (Groningen, Bergen-op-Zoom, Geleen); New Zealand: J Crane, S Lewis (Wellington, Christchurch, Hawkes Bay); Norway: A Gulsvik, E Omenaas (Bergen); Portugal: J A Marques, J Alves (Oporto); Spain: J M Antó, J Sunyer, F Burgos, J Castellsagué, J Roca, J B Soriano, A Tobías (Barcelona), N Muniozguren, J Ramos González, A Capelastegui (Galdakao), J Castillo, J Rodriguez Portal (Seville), J Martinez-Moratalla, E Almar (Albacete), J Maldonado Pérez A Pereira, J Sánchez (Huelva), J Quiros, I Huerta, F Pavo (Oviedo); Sweden: G Boman, C Janson, E Björnsson (Uppsala), L Rosenhall, E Norrman, B Lundbäck (Umeå), N Lindholm, P Plaschke (Göteborg); Switzerland: U Ackermann-Liebrich, N Künzli, A Perruchoud (Basel); UK: M Burr, J Layzell (Caerphilly), R Hall (Ipswich), B Harrison (Norwich), J Stark (Cambridge); USA: S Buist, W Vollmer, M Osborne (Portland).