Smoking Status Modifies the Relationship between Th2 Biomarkers and Small Airway Obstruction in Asthma
Table 1
Baseline characteristics of subjects.
Variable
Total subjects (n = 478)
Obstructive group (n = 385)
Normal group (n = 93)
value
Gender (male)
200 (41.8%)
165 (42.9%)
35 (37.6%)
0.360
Age (median[range])
45[18, 78]
46[18, 78]
41[18, 66]
0.003
BMI (kg/m2)
23.1 ± 3.3
23.1 ± 3.3
23.1 ± 3.2
0.840
Education (yrs)
≤9
297 (62.1%)
239 (62.1%)
58 (62.4%)
0.299
10–12
70 (14.6%)
61 (15.8%)
9 (9.7%)
13–16
102 (21.3%)
79 (20.5%)
23 (24.7%)
≥17
9 (1.9%)
6 (1.6%)
3 (3.2%)
Family income (10 thousand RMB/yr)
<5.0
283 (59.2%)
236 (61.3%)
47 (50.5%)
0.019
5.0–9.9
101 (21.1%)
81 (21.0%)
20 (21.5%)
10.0–19.9
75 (15.7%)
51 (13.2%)
24 (25.8%)
≥20.0
12 (2.5%)
11 (2.9%)
1 (1.1%)
Smoking history (yes)
129 (27.0%)
114 (29.6%)
15 (16.1%)
0.001
Smoking history (pack-year)
6.3 ± 14.0
7.1 ± 14.8
2.9 ± 9.3
0.001
Smoking status
Current smoking
79 (16.5%)
70 (18.2%)
9 (9.7%)
0.031
Ex-smoking
50 (10.5%)
44 (11.4%)
6 (6.5%)
Never smoking
349 (73.0%)
271 (70.4%)
78 (83.9%)
Blood eosinophil count (uL)
325 ± 405
345 ± 435
242 ± 230
0.028
Blood eosinophils >400 uL
132 (27.6%)
115 (29.9%)
17 (18.3%)
0.025
Total IgE in blood (ng/ml)
775.805 ± 898.192
742.625 ± 870.746
913.163 ± 997.238
0.100
Total IgE >240 ng/ml
354 (74.1%)
279 (72.5%)
75 (80.6%)
0.106
Blood eosinophils >400 uL plus total IgE >240 ng/ml
106 (22.2%)
91 (23.6%)
15 (16.1%)
0.118
ICS (yes)
402 (84.1%)
316 (82.1%)
86 (92.5%)
0.014
LABA (yes)
401 (83.9%)
315 (81.8%)
86 (92.5%)
0.012
LTRA (yes)
25 (5.2%)
18 (4.7%)
7 (7.5%)
0.396
AQLQ
Symptoms score
5.1 ± 1.1
5.0 ± 1.1
5.6 ± 1.0
<0.001
Activity limitation score
5.2 ± 1.1
5.2 ± 1.1
5.6 ± 1.0
<0.001
Emotional function score
5.3 ± 1.2
5.2 ± 1.2
5.6 ± 1.1
0.002
Environmental stimuli score
4.8 ± 1.3
4.7 ± 1.3
5.0 ± 1.3
0.084
Total
5.2 ± 1.0
5.1 ± 1.0
5.5 ± 0.9
<0.001
SF-36
Bodily pain
1.9 ± 1.1
2.0 ± 1.1
1.8 ± 1.0
0.102
Physical functioning
26.3 ± 3.6
26.0 ± 3.7
27.4 ± 3.0
<0.001
Physical role
6.8 ± 1.8
6.6 ± 1.8
7.3 ± 1.4
<0.001
General health
15.7 ± 1.4
15.7 ± 1.4
15.4 ± 1.2
0.117
Vitality
15.4 ± 2.3
15.4 ± 2.2
15.3 ± 2.4
0.716
Social functioning
7.0 ± 1.2
7.0 ± 1.2
7.0 ± 1.4
0.901
Emotional role
5.2 ± 1.3
5.1 ± 1.3
5.6 ± 1.0
0.001
Mental health
20.0 ± 2.5
19.9 ± 2.5
20.3 ± 2.5
0.260
Reported health transition
3.3 ± 0.9
3.4 ± 0.9
3.1 ± 1.0
0.008
Total
101.5 ± 7.3
101.1 ± 7.4
103.1 ± 6.6
0.015
ACT score
18.7 ± 3.9
18.4 ± 3.9
20.2 ± 3.5
<0.001
ACT score after the first-month initial treatment. BMI, body mass index. ICS, inhaled glucocorticoid. LABA, long-acting beta-agonist. LTRA, leukotriene receptor antagonists. AQLQ, Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire. SF-36, Short-Form 36 Questionnaire. ACT, asthma control test.
