Clinical aspects of using exhaled NO in asthma diagnosis and management.

Dora Ludviksdottir, Zuzana Diamant, Kjell Alving, Leif Bjermer, Andrei Malinovschi

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Current guidelines recommend tailoring of asthma management according to disease control, which is largely defined by increased symptoms and deterioration in lung function. These features do not reflect the severity nor the type of the asthmatic airway inflammation. Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FE(NO)) is a simple, non-invasive and cost-effective online test applicable in both adults and children. In addition to symptoms and lung function measurements, FE(NO) reflects airway eosinophilia and hence allows online assessment of the corticosteroid-sensitive T helper 2 type airway inflammation in asthmatic patients. FE(NO) can thus be applied to aid asthma diagnosis and treatment monitoring both in clinical practice and for research purposes. The scope of this review is to provide an overview of the most important clinical studies using FE(NO) in asthma management and to summarise the implications of FE(NO) measurements in clinical practice. In several studies, FE(NO) measurements provided additional information on aspects of asthma including phenotyping, corticosteroid-responsiveness and disease control. Thus, if correctly applied and interpreted, FE(NO) can aid asthma diagnosis, identify patients at risk of exacerbation and support customized treatment decisions. A simple and reliable tool to quantify peripheral nitric oxide will further aid to identify patients with small airways inflammation.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)193-207
JournalClinical Respiratory Journal
Volume6
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2012

Other keywords

  • Adrenal Cortex Hormones
  • Adult
  • Anti-Asthmatic Agents
  • Asthma
  • Breath Tests
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Disease Progression
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Monitoring, Physiologic
  • Nitric Oxide
  • Predictive Value of Tests
  • Respiratory Function Tests
  • Risk Assessment
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Severity of Illness Index
  • Treatment Outcome

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Clinical aspects of using exhaled NO in asthma diagnosis and management.'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this