Wheezer Worries
British researchers found that participants younger than 2 years of age who wheezed, regrdless of its cause, were no more likely to become adults with asthma than were those without wheeze, per se. However, children who started wheezing from ages 2 to 5 years of age and who had many wheezing episodes were highly likely to wheeze in adulthood; there was a steady increase in the annual prevalence of wheeze in participants who were older than 3 years.

Study Population: The study began with 100 participants, all born in 1976. They were followed them from birth to age 22 years of age. They were deemed at high risk for atopic disease and wheezy disorders, having been selected on the basis that at least one of their parents was atopic. (Df: Atopic diseases are inherited immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated illnesses such as allergic rhinitis and allergic asthma). The research cohort was studied every 3 months for their first year, annually through age 5, and again at 11 and 22 years. There were 63 subjects left at age 22, although data from every test was available for only 58.

Findings: Of the 58, 20 (34%) never wheezed over the entire 22-year period; 12 (21%) wheezed only when younger than 5 years; and 26 (45%) wheezed when older than 5 years.
January 24, 2002 American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine (American Thoracic Society)--peer-reviewed.