Is Obesity Related to Worse Control in Children with Asthma?

Introduction: Asthma and obesity are related diseases however the influence of obesity on asthma severity is not clear yet. Therefore, the aim of our study was to evaluate the association between obesity and asthma control evaluated on the basis of symptoms and asthma control questionnaire (ACQ). Materials and Methods: We enrolled 98 children with asthma aged 4 to 14 years consecutively and recorded their disease characteristics and severity parameters as well as the symptom scores. All children filled in the ACQ. Children were classified as obese and non-obese according to body mass index. Obesity was defined as body mass index over 90th percentile. Results: Mean age of the children in the obese group (n=27) was 8.1 +/- 2.6 while that in the non-obese group (n=71) was 8.6 +/- 2.9 (p=0.41). Asthma symptom score in obese and non-obese groups were not significantly different (p=0.73). Children in the obese group had lower ACQ scores when compared to the non-obese group (1.2 +/- 0.9 vs 1.7 +/- 1.0, p=0.04) however this significance was lost when controlled for age and gender in the regression model. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that obesity is not significantly associated with worse asthma control when adjusted for age and gender.