Predictors for asthma at age 7 years for low-income children enrolled in the Childhood Asthma Prevention Study.

Objective: To identify the predictive factors of early childhood wheezing in children of low socioeconomic status.

Study Design: The Childhood Asthma Prevention Study enrolled 177 low-income children (9-24 months old) with frequent wheezing. At age 7 years, presence of asthma was assessed through caregiver reports of physician diagnosis of asthma (CRPDA) and corroborated by assessment of bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR).

Long-term effects of asthma medications in children.

Purpose Of Review: This review describes recent studies in children that evaluated long-term outcomes of controller asthma medications.

Recent Findings: The literature is replete with studies demonstrating the immediate profound effects of inhaled corticosteroids on symptom control, reduction in morbidity and mortality rates, improvement in lung function, bronchial hyperresponsiveness, and inflammatory markers. Recent evidence supports that even this most effective class of medication does not alter the progression of recurrent wheeze to asthma, and that its effects on decline in lung function are limited.

Heterogeneity in response to asthma medications.

Purpose Of Review: Evidence for the heterogeneity of response to asthma medications including inhaled corticosteroids and leukotriene receptor antagonists is mounting. beta2-Adrenoceptor gene polymorphisms may contribute to asthma responsiveness to short- and long-acting beta2-agonists. This review examines recent articles describing variability in response to inhaled corticosteroids, leukotriene receptor antagonists and short-acting beta2-agonists specifically in pediatric persistent asthmatics.