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Exhaled nitric oxide in childhood asthma: a review
Author(s) -
Pijnenburg M. W. H.,
De Jongste J. C.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
clinical and experimental allergy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.462
H-Index - 154
eISSN - 1365-2222
pISSN - 0954-7894
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2222.2007.02897.x
Subject(s) - exhaled nitric oxide , asthma , medicine , intensive care medicine , airway , asthma management , lung function , nitric oxide , asthma exacerbations , corticosteroid , respiratory system , immunology , pediatrics , lung , anesthesia , spirometry
Summary As an ‘inflammometer’, the fraction of nitric oxide in exhaled air (F e NO ) is increasingly used in the management of paediatric asthma. F e NO provides us with valuable, additional information regarding the nature of underlying airway inflammation, and complements lung function testing and measurement of airway hyper‐reactivity. This review focuses on clinical applications of F e NO in paediatric asthma. First, F e NO provides us with a practical tool to aid in the diagnosis of asthma and distinguish patients who will benefit from inhaled corticosteroids from those who will not. Second, F e NO is helpful in predicting exacerbations, and predicting successful steroid reduction or withdrawal. In atopic asthmatic children F e NO is beneficial in adjusting steroid doses, discerning those patients who require additional therapy from those whose medication dose could feasibly be reduced. In pre‐school children F e NO may be of help in the differential diagnosis of respiratory symptoms, and may potentially allow for better targeting and monitoring of anti‐inflammatory treatment.