Pulmonary outcomes in adults with a history of Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia differ from patients with asthma

• Main Authors: Petra Um-Bergström, Jenny Hallberg, Melvin Pourbazargan, Eva Berggren-Broström, Giovanni Ferrara, Maria J. Eriksson, Sven Nyrén, Jing Gao, Gunnar Lilja, Anders Lindén, Åsa M. Wheelock, Erik Melén, C. Magnus Sköld
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: BMC 2019-05-01
• Series: Respiratory Research
• Subjects: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia; Adults; Astma; Lung function tests; Oscillometry; Spirometry
• Online Access: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12931-019-1075-1

Abstract Background Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a risk factor for respiratory disease in adulthood. Despite the differences in underlying pathology, patients with a history of BPD are often treated as asthmatics. We hypothesized that pulmonary outcomes and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) were different in adults born preterm with and without a history of BPD compared to asthmatics and healthy individuals. Methods We evaluated 96 young adults from the LUNAPRE cohort (clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02923648), including 26 individuals born preterm with a history of BPD (BPD), 23 born preterm without BPD (preterm), 23 asthmatics and 24 healthy controls. Extensive lung function testing and HRQoL were assessed. Results The BPD group had more severe airway obstruction compared to the preterm-, (FEV1− 0.94 vs. 0.28 z-scores; p ≤ 0.001); asthmatic- (0.14 z-scores, p ≤ 0.01) and healthy groups (0.78 z-scores, p ≤ 0.001). Further, they had increased ventilation inhomogeneity compared to the preterm- (LCI 6.97 vs. 6.73, p ≤ 0.05), asthmatic- (6.75, p = 0.05) and healthy groups (6.50 p ≤ 0.001). Both preterm groups had lower DLCO compared to healthy controls (p ≤ 0.001 for both). HRQoL showed less physical but more psychological symptoms in the BPD group compared to asthmatics. Conclusions Lung function impairment and HRQoL in adults with a history of BPD differed from that in asthmatics highlighting the need for objective assessment of lung health.