TABLE 4.
Participant data at V2 (8 weeks)
| ACQ group | FeNO group | p-value# | |
| Subjects n | 36 | 36 | |
| Demographic details¶ | |||
| Mean age years | 30 (24–46) | 42 (27–52) | 0.1 |
| Height cm | 172±9 | 173±8 | 0.7 |
| Weight kg | 71 (62–85) | 75 (66–80) | 0.5 |
| BMI kg·m−2 | 24.2 (21.8–26.5) | 24.3 (21.7–27.7) | 0.7 |
| Atopy | 24 (67) | 22 (63) | 0.7 |
| Smoking | 0.3 | ||
| Current | 5 (14) | 11 (28) | |
| Ex | 12 (32) | 10 (25) | |
| Never | 20 (54) | 19 (48) | |
| Smoking history pack-years | 6.0 (0.8–11.0) | 10.0 (5.5–18.8) | 0.2 |
| Asthma-related QoL | |||
| ACQ | 1.2 (0.2–1.6) | 0.8 (0.4–2.0) | 0.7 |
| Mini AQLQ | 6.1 (5.2–6.5) | 6.3 (5.4–6.7) | 1.0 |
| Spirometry | |||
| RDR %·mg−1 | 0.04 (0.02–0.06) | 0.03 (0.02–0.06) | 0.5 |
| Mean FEV1 L | 3.25±0.86 | 3.25±0.85 | 1.0 |
| Mean FEV1 % | 92.4±11.3 | 94.7±16.2 | 0.5 |
| Mean FVC L | 4.17±1.18 | 4.38±0.89 | 0.4 |
| Mean FEV1/FVC % | 78.8±8.1 | 73.8±9.4 | 0.02 |
| FeNO ppb | 21 (13–32) | 22 (13–31) | 1.0 |
| Present treatment | |||
| ICS use | 37 (97) | 40 (100) | 0.3 |
| ICS dose µg | 400 (400–400) | 400 (400–400) | 0.1 |
| LABA use | 6 (15) | 5 (13) | 0.8 |
| LABA dose µg | 9 (9–18) | 18 (18–36) | 0.1 |
| Inflammatory features | |||
| Leukocyte ×109·L−1 | 6.5 (5.3–7.8) | 6.5 (5.3–8.1) | 0.8 |
| Eosinophil ×109·L−1 | 0.14 (0.11–0.20) | 0.18 (0.10–0.31) | 0.5 |
| Neutrophil ×109·L−1 | 4 (2.7–5.2) | 3.3 (3.1–5.1) | 0.9 |
| CRP mg·L−1 | 1.1 (0.6–2.5) | 1.0 (1.0–2.7) | 0.9 |
| IgE kU·L−1 | 99 (19–325) | 98 (39–259) | 1.0 |
| IL-6 pg·mg−1 | 1.2 (0.8–2.1) | 1.5 (1.0–2.2) | 0.3 |
| IL-8 pg·mg−1 | 110 (47–168) | 116 (80–180) | 0.6 |
| Sputum inflammation | |||
| Eosinophils % | 0.38 (0.25–0.82) | 0.88 (0.25–3) | 0.1 |
| Neutrophils % | 38.0 (21.1–49.1) | 28.0 (9.1–68.4) | 0.9 |
| Macrophages % | 40.8 (17.3–57) | 30.6 (18.8–64.3) | 0.9 |
| Columnar epithelia % | 11.4 (4.4–20.6) | 12.1 (5.0–18.3) | 0.8 |
Data are presented as median (interquartile range), mean±sd or n (%), unless otherwise stated. ACQ: Asthma Control Questionnaire; FeNO: exhaled nitric oxide fraction; BMI: body mass index; QoL: quality of life; AQLQ: Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire; RDR: response dose ratio; FEV1: forced expiratory volume in 1 s; FVC: forced vital capacity; ICS: inhaled corticosteroids; LABA: long-acting β2-agonist; CRP: C-reactive protein; Ig: immunoglobulin; IL: interleukin. #: based on Chi-squared tests, t-tests and Wilcoxon rank sum tests; ¶: data from 80 subjects (40 in each group).