Table 2. Clinical characteristics of four groups based on the results of free-running provocation and methacholine provocation tests.

	MBPT (+)		MBPT (−)
	EIB (+) N = 43	EIB (−) N = 7	EIB (+) N = 27	EIB (−) N = 30
Age (mean, yr)	21.7±0.6	20.6±0.6	24.1±1.5	23.6±1.1
Nonsmoker (None/total, %)	21/30 (70)	4/6 (66.7)	10/16 (62.5)	15/20 (75)
History of asthma (%)	24 (55.8)	2 (28.6)	9 (33.3)	11 (36.7)
Temperature (mean °C)*	12.0±1.9	11.0±4.7	7.4±2.2	17.8±2.1
Humidity (mean %)*	45.7±2.2	47.4±8.9	45.4±2.4	52.3±2.2
Atopy rate (%)	93.5	100	77.8	72
Serum IgE (mean, IU/mL)	759.7±149.3	185.3±50.5	233.4±53.8	375.1±151.5
Sinusitis (%)	29.6	0	35.3	15.8
Sputum analysis
Macrophage (mean, %)	76.5±3.7	68.5±8.2	69.1±9.3	79.6±3.7
Neutrophil (mean, %)	13.7±3.5	18.7±4.1	15.8±5.6	10.4±2.1
Eosinophil (mean, %)	8.7±2.8	11.3±7.1	14.5±9.0	5.3±3.4
Eosinophilia rate	70.6	66.7	57.1	15.4
Pulmonary function test
FVC%	89.6±1.7	93.86±4.3	93.0±1.8	95.86±2.5
FEV1%	83.5±2.2	93.14±4.3	94.7±2.1	97.03±2.3
FEV1/FVC%	79.2±1.4	84.29±1.3	86.6±1.4	86.08±0.8
Methacholine provocation
PC20 (mg/mL)**	5.3±0.8	11.1±1.0
Exercise provocation test
Decrement of FEV1 (%)	32.6±1.7	6.93±1.1	24.6±2.1	7.40±0.7
Air pollution
SO2	0.0072±0.0004	0.0076±0.0008	0.0071±0.0007	0.0070±0.0004
CO2	0.0375±0.0021	0.0324±0.0025	0.0354±0.0030	0.0367±0.0021
CO	0.68±0.06	0.47±0.06	0.68±0.35	0.62±0.23
O3	0.015±0.002	0.016±0.002	0.020±0.033	0.022±0.019
Fine dust	51.36±3.35	54.43±10.05	50.15±19.06	55.63±28.93

Data are means ± SEM or percentages, MBPT: methacholine bronchial provocation test; EIB: exercise provocation test.

^*indicates p<0.05 between EIB(+) and EIB(−) patients among MBPT(−) patients.

^**indicates p<0.05 between EIB(+) and EIB(−) patients among MBPT(+) patients.