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Apple-shaped women's asthma risk

(BBC 25/08/2009)

A study suggests apple-shaped women with a waist bigger than 88cm have a higher risk of developing asthma - even if they have a normal body weight. Being overweight is well known to raise the risk of asthma. But the latest study suggests that the amount of weight women carry around the abdomen might be particularly important. The study, by the Northern California Cancer Centre at Berkeley, appears in the journal Thorax. The researchers analysed data on 88,304 females.

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Asthma concerns over drugs costs

(BBC 24/06/2009)

Patients with asthma avoid using inhalers or cut down their dose because they cannot afford prescription charges, a study suggests. Research at the University of Manchester found that patients "skipped" or "stretched out" medicine, potentially making their illness worse. A government review on prescription charge exemptions is due in the autumn. In the latest study, 30 UK patients who had to pay prescription charges were asked several questions about cost.

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Asthma airway-morphing step found

(BBC 16/06/2009)

Scientists believe they have discovered a key component in the development of chronic asthma, pointing the way to new treatments. As asthma progresses, the airways are changed or remodelled and become more muscular and reactive to allergens. Critical to this process is a cellular pump in the muscles called SERCA2, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reports. Ultimately drugs acting on SERCA2 might stop lung damage, the UK experts hope.

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Vitamin D Levels Linked To Asthma Severity

(World health - EU Monitor 24/04/2009)

Serum levels of vitamin D in more than 600 Costa Rican children were inversely linked to several indicators of allergy and asthma severity, including hospitalizations for asthma, use of inhaled steroids and total IgE levels, according to a study that will appear in the first issue for May of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine [early research].

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Allergy reaction

(BBC 16/04/2009)

An allergy epidemic is sweeping parts of the world. Sue Emmett reports on a huge study in India which researchers hope will help them discover why. Project leader Dr Mahesh Rao says researchers have established that there has been a 50% rise in asthma in the area in past five years. Yet the more traditional communities are the least affected. This appears to follow a pattern that has been seen in other parts of the world where Westernisation has taken place, he says.

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Vitamin deficiency asthma 'link'

(BBC 16/04/2009)

A low intake of vitamins A and C could raise the risk of asthma, a team which reviewed 40 studies carried out over the past 30 years has said. A Nottingham University-led team found people with a low intake of vitamin C had a 12% increased risk of asthma, the Thorax journal reported. For vitamin A the raised risk was less clear cut, the team said, but there was still a significant association. Asthma UK and the Medical Research Council said more research was needed.

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Antibodies tackle severe asthma

(BBC 05/03/2009)

Patients with a type of severe asthma benefit from injections of an antibody, research has shown. Two teams, in the UK and Canada, found the treatment mepolizumab helped those patients with asthma exacerbated by a condition called eosinophilia. The drug not only reduced the frequency of severe attacks, but enabled patients to cut back on the use of steroids, which are associated with side effects.

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TV linked to asthma risk doubling

(BBC 03/03/2009)

Young children who spend more than two hours a day watching TV double their risk of developing asthma, a UK study has found. Rather than telly per se being to blame, experts believe the viewing is symptomatic of a sedentary lifestyle which may be the root cause. Taking deep breaths, such as when exercising, may keep the lungs fit. The study, published in Thorax journal, tracked the health of over 3,000 UK children from birth to 11.

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Are common drugs a key to asthma relief?

(Daily Mail 21/02/2009)

Up to 150,000 Britons suffering from the symptoms of severe asthma could benefit from taking antifungal medication already available from pharmacists, a new study has found.

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