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Arterial stiffness is increased in asthmatic children

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Abstract

Altered arterial stiffness is a recognized risk factor of poor cardiovascular health. Chronic inflammation may increase arterial stiffness. We tested whether arterial stiffness is increased children with asthma, a chronic disease characterized by fluctuating airway and systemic inflammation. Arterial stiffness, expressed as carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWVcf), was measured in 37 mild-to-moderate asthmatic children: 11 girls, median (range) age 11.1 years (6–15). PWVcf in asthma was compared to PWVcf in 65 healthy controls matched for age, height, and gender previously studied in Germany and was correlated with airway inflammation and obstruction. PWVcf was higher in asthmatic children compared to controls: PWVcf median (interquartile range) was 4.7 m/s (4.5–4.9) vs. 4.3 m/s (4.1–4.7), p < 0.0001. In asthmatic children, PWVcf was inversely associated (r 2 = 0.20, p = 0.004) with forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1). This association remained significant after adjusting for possible confounders including body mass index, blood pressure, steroid use, and FeNO.

Conclusion: Arterial stiffness is increased in children with mild-to-moderate asthma. The association between impaired lung function and increased arterial stiffness suggests that severity of disease translates into detrimental effects on the cardiovascular system.

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Funding

The study was funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (Project PPOOP3_123453 / 1) to Nicolas Regamey.

Conflict of interest

None to declare.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Pediatric Nephrology, Department of Pediatrics, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, and University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland

    Markus Steinmann & Giacomo D. Simonetti

  2. Division of Pediatric Respiratory Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, and University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland

    Markus Steinmann, Chiara Abbas, Florian Singer, Carmen Casaulta & Nicolas Regamey

  3. University Children’s Hospital Zurich, Steinwiesstrasse 75, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland

    Florian Singer

  4. Department of Pediatric Kidney, Liver and Metabolic Disease, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany

    Dieter Haffner

  5. Department of Pediatrics, University Hospital Rostock, Rostock, Germany

    Dagmar-Christiane Fischer

  6. Pediatric Department of Southern Switzerland, Bellinzona, Switzerland

    Giacomo D. Simonetti

Authors
  1. Markus Steinmann
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  2. Chiara Abbas
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  3. Florian Singer
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  4. Carmen Casaulta
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  5. Nicolas Regamey
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  6. Dieter Haffner
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  7. Dagmar-Christiane Fischer
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  8. Giacomo D. Simonetti
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Giacomo D. Simonetti.

Additional information

Communicated by Peter de Winter

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Steinmann, M., Abbas, C., Singer, F. et al. Arterial stiffness is increased in asthmatic children. Eur J Pediatr 174, 519–523 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-014-2423-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-014-2423-2

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