TOPLINE

Adult patients with asthma showed more than double the odds of elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) compared with healthy control individuals. Across all age groups, hsCRP levels increased with clinical severity of wheeze and asthma, with the Asthma Severity Scoring System (ASSESS) score correlating positively with hsCRP in patients aged ≥ 6 years.

METHODOLOGY

• Researchers conducted a multicenter, prospective cohort study as part of the All Age Asthma Cohort (ALLIANCE) across seven hospitals in Germany.
• A total of 944 participants (age range, 0.5-79 years) were analyzed, including 784 pediatric participants (preschool wheezers aged 6 months-5 years with ≥ 2 wheezing episodes and school-age patients with asthma aged 6-18 years) and 254 adult patients with asthma (aged ≥ 18 years), compared with healthy control individuals.
• hsCRP was measured centrally using the AU5800 CRP-Latex test (analytical range 0.08-10 mg/L) at baseline visits. Disease severity was measures using ASSESS score.
• Age-stratified analyses (0-5, 6-18, ≥ 18 years) of standardized log10-transformed hsCRP concentrations were performed, adjusting for age, sex, BMI, and study site.
• Researchers compared hsCRP levels in patients with wheeze and asthma vs healthy individuals and assessed how hsCRP related to ASSESS dimensions, including symptom control, lung function (forced expiratory volume in 1 second [FEV1]), medication use, and exacerbations.

TAKEAWAY

• Adults with asthma had higher levels of hsCRP than healthy control individuals (odds ratio [OR], 2.17, 95% CI, 1.52-3.18; median hsCRP: healthy individuals = 0.56 mg/L; asthmatics = 1.58 mg/L), ,
• In school-age patients with asthma (6-18 years), the ASSESS score correlated positively with hsCRP (R = 0.19, P = .007), as it did in adult patients with asthma.
• hsCRP was increased in school-age patients who experienced exacerbations within the previous 12 months and in adult patients with impaired lung function (FEV1) (R = 0.2, P = .014).
• Use of inhaled corticosteroids within the previous 12 months was associated with lower hsCRP levels in preschool wheezers (OR, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.50-0.85) but higher levels in adults (OR, 2.05; 95% CI, 1.05-4.19).

IN PRACTICE

"In both childhood and adulthood, hsCRP was positively associated with asthma severity
reflecting its relevance for the disease course and monitoring of clinical parameters," the authors of the study wrote.

SOURCE

The study was led by Lena Lagally, Department of Paediatric Allergology, Dr. von Hauner Children's Hospital, LMU University Hospital, LMU Medizin, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München in Munich, Germany. It was published online on July 27 in Respiratory Research.

LIMITATIONS

The cross-sectional design prevented causal conclusions. Medication intake was recorded using questionnaires, and treatment adherence, especially in children and adolescents, was difficult to assess in large cohort studies, potentially diluting observed effects. Analyses were not formally corrected for multiple comparisons.

DISCLOSURES

The study was supported by grants from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung, BMBF) as part of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL) and the German Center for Child and Adolescent Health (DZKJ). Several authors reported receiving grants, fees, or research support from pharmaceutical companies and other organizations, including support unrelated to this work. Additional author disclosures are reported in the original article.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.