The Free Running Asthma Screening Test (FRAST) was performed on 830 randomly selected volunteers (age 14-17) chosen from British Columbia school students. An educational workshop on asthma was presented before testing. A self-reported questionnaire was distributed to evaluate predisposing factors. Air quality parameters were obtained on days of testing. FRAST was used to challenge exercise induced asthma (EIA). Peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) was used to obtain baseline and post exercise spirometry. A 15% decrease in PEFR was considered a positive challenge result. Of 830 subjects tested, 110 (13.2%) responded positively to exercise challenge. Of the population tested, 21.8% self-reported a history of allergic disease, 76.4% of whom were from the positive responders' group. From the positive group only 72 (65.4%) were previously diagnosed as asthmatic. History of allergic disease was the strongest predisposing factor. The results indicate that inexpensive screening may improve early diagnosis and thus better preventive management.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Is the level of pollutants a risk factor for exercise-induced asthma prevalence?

Increased prevalence of asthma is commonly though to be associated with increased air pollution and with lifestyle changes. This study evaluates a possible relationship of levels of exposure to outdoor pollutants and exercise-induced asthma prevalence. Two groups of students (age 14-17) in distant urban areas were randomly selected (n = 649): Group I (n = 430), Vancouver, B.C., Canada; Group II (n = 219), Prague, Czech Republic. The free running asthma screening test was performed at both locations; self-report questionnaires were distributed to all participants. Peak expiratory flow rates were used to evaluate baseline and postexercise spirometry. A 15% decrease was considered a positive response to exercise challenge. The information on ambient air quality (SO2, NO2, O3, PM10) was obtained from appropriate institutions. Of 649 subjects tested [Group I: n = 430, F = 251 (58.4%,) M = 179 (41.6%) and Group II: n = 219, F = 112 (51.6%), M = 107 (48.4%)], 81 of the participants (13.2%) responded positively to the exercise challenge [Group I: n = 55 (12.8%) and Group II: n = 26 (11.8%)]. Of the population tested, 150 (23.6%) participants self-reported a history of allergic disease [Group I: 94 (21.9%) and Group II: 56 (25.6%)]. The levels of air pollutants obtained for Group II significantly exceeded those obtained for Group I. This study reports a prevalence of 12.3% of exercised-induced asthma among high school students, when free running asthma screening test and peak expiratory flow rate are used. Significantly different levels of common pollutants do not correlate with asthma prevalence. Although it is recognized that air pollution is a well-known asthma trigger, it cannot be a simple explanation for the continued problem of rising asthma prevalence.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Aging changes in conjunctival blood vessels].

The relation of the changes in the conjunctival blood vessels to the age were studied in a group of 217 persons aged 20 to 79 years. All persons suffering from arterial hypertension, diabetes, systemic diseases and manifested forms of arteriosclerosis were excluded. It has been proved that examination of the conjunctival blood vessels by means of the slot-lamp facilitates the study of the changes in the microscopic blood vessels in relation to the age. Most conspicuous was the increase of the meander course of the blood vessels, also the increasing number of blood vessels is more frequent in the group of older persons. Clusters of vessels and a narrowing of the diameter of the arterioles was seen only in persons over fifty years of age. The "upright" course of the arterioles was found only in individual cases and without any special dependence to age. Sacculations on the small veins and microaneurysms on the arterioles were not observed in any of the examined group of healthy persons.

Adult↗