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Exhaled breath temperature as a tool for monitoring asthma control after an attack in children
Author(s) -
Sol In Suk,
Kim Yoon Hee,
Kim Soo Yeon,
Choi Sun Ha,
Kim Hye Ran,
Kim Kyung Won,
Sohn Myung Hyun
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
pediatric pulmonology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.866
H-Index - 106
eISSN - 1099-0496
pISSN - 8755-6863
DOI - 10.1002/ppul.24225
Subject(s) - medicine , asthma , expiration , spirometry , asthma attack , cardiology , exhalation , respiratory system , anesthesia
Background Exhaled breath temperature (EBT) has been suggested as a non‐invasive marker of airway inflammation in asthma. There have been no studies examining longitudinal changes in EBT following asthma attacks. Objective To investigate changes in EBT during and after an asthma attack and to relate these changes to changes in respiratory physiological measurements. Methods We evaluated 38 hospitalized children aged 5‐18 years diagnosed with an asthma attack. Spirometry was performed upon hospitalization. During hospitalization, EBT, peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR), and asthma score were measured daily. These tests were repeated 1 week and 1 month after discharge. The overall PEFR change, temporal changes in plateau values at the end of expiration, and time‐dynamic associations were evaluated using linear mixed models. Results FEV 1 was lower at admission than at discharge (63.3 ± 24 vs 99.5 ± 14 percent of predicted, P < 0.001). The EBT was higher at admission than at 1 week after discharge (34.1°C [range: 33.9‐34.8°C] vs 33.6°C [range: 33.0‐34.2°C], P = 0.007); overall, EBTs decreased over time ( P = 0.007). Among individual subjects, decreased EBT was correlated with increased PEFR over time. Furthermore, plateau values at the end of expiration had a time‐dependent, dynamic association with the PEFR during hospitalization ( P = 0.005) and between asthma attack onset and asthma status stabilization ( P = 0.032). Conclusions The EBT was elevated during asthma attacks and gradually decreased until asthma was well controlled. The EBT may be a useful, non‐invasive tool for monitoring asthma control in children.