Treatable traits of asthma in adults: a population-based study based on the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

BACKGROUND

Data on treatable traits (TTs) in different populations are still limited.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate TT prevalence in asthma patients versus non-asthmatic controls using Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data, and investigate TT associations with prior asthma attacks.

METHODS

This is an observational study based on data of the NHANES from 2001 to 2018 and 2021 to 2023. We evaluated the prevalence of TTs in patients with asthma and compared it with a group of participants without asthma. Additionally, logistic regressions were used to examine the cross-sectional associations between TTs and a self-reported history of asthma attack in the past 12 months.

RESULTS

A total of 4949 adults with asthma were studied. We assessed 41 TTs in total, including 13 pulmonary traits, 19 extrapulmonary traits, and nine behavioral/risk-factor traits. Almost all of these traits were more common in patients with asthma than in those without asthma. Univariate logistic regression analysis identified nine traits were associated with a history of asthma attack in the past year. These associations remained significant for a core set of traits in the multivariable logistic regression analysis, including blood eosinophil-marked T2 inflammation, emphysema/chronic bronchitis/COPD, hay fever, angina, stroke, systemic inflammation, and insufficient sleep time.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with asthma bear a significantly higher burden of TTs, and some traits are associated with increased odds of prior asthma attack, suggesting the added disease burden in this population. Large-scale prospective studies are required to confirm these associations.