Exhaled nitric oxide linked to increased risk of childhood asthma: Study
July 15th, 2010 - 5:11 pm ICT by ANIWashington, July 15 (ANI): A recent study by US researchers has revealed that children with elevated levels of exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) are at increased risk for developing asthma, particularly among children without a parental history of the disease.
According to findings of the study, conducted at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, FeNO may be a useful biomarker for identifying children at risk for the disease, and in developing strategies for preventing asthma.
Researchers found that children with the highest levels of FeNO were more than twice as likely to develop asthma compared to those with the lowest levels. Higher levels of FeNO were linked with development of asthma most often in children whose parents had no history of the disease.
Nitric oxide is a gas that is produced by the cells that line the inner wall of the lungs’ airways, and may be a marker of the inflammatory process that occurs in the lungs prior to asthma onset.
“We believe this is the first study to demonstrate the predictive value of FeNO for identifying children who are at risk for developing asthma,” Tracy Bastain, a doctoral student in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine and the lead author of the study said.
“Our results were strongest in children whose parents had never had asthma, suggesting that FeNO might help to identify additional susceptible children,” she added.
The study was published ahead of print in the European Respiratory Journal. (ANI)
- Internet monitoring strategy effective for severe asthma patients - May 17, 2010
- Biomarker can nip hardening of arteries in the bud - Jan 22, 2012
- Nitric oxide can ward off deadly infections - Jul 24, 2011
- Monitoring exhaled nitric oxide does not improve asthma control - Sep 20, 2008
- Four novel biomarkers that may help diagnose asthma, COPD identified - Mar 12, 2011
- Simple blood test could provide early detection of emphysema - Mar 12, 2011
- Measuring oxidative stress may help predict atrial fibrillation risk - Apr 05, 2011
- Kids with severe asthma at increased risk of developing COPD as adults - May 17, 2010
- Alzheimer's risk increases with maternal inheritance - Nov 16, 2010
- Kids of stressed out parents at 'increased air pollution-related asthma risk' - Jul 21, 2009
- Exercise protects heart via nitric oxide - May 05, 2011
- Caesarean babies have higher risk of asthma - Jan 11, 2012
- Imbalanced diet, inadequate exercise may cause asthma in kids - Sep 17, 2010
- Now, simple blood test to help predict chronic kidney disease - Oct 22, 2010
- Asthmatic kids experience premature loss of lung function later in life - Jan 19, 2011
Tags: asthma, asthma study, biomarker, cells, childhood asthma, children at risk, doctoral student, european respiratory journal, inflammatory process, keck school of medicine, lungs, marker, medicine, parental history, predictive value, preventing asthma, preventive medicine, school of medicine, susceptible children, university of southern california