Abstract

SOLER FONSECA, Verónica; PEREZ DIAZ, Xiomara; RIGNACK RAMIREZ, Lliliams  and  HEVIA GONZALEZ, Luis Enrique. Relationship between Acute High Respiratory Infections and Asthma. Rev Cubana Med Gen Integr [online]. 2013, vol.29, n.3, pp.297-305. ISSN 0864-2125.

Introduction: respiratory infection is the most common disease in humans; it is responsible for half of all acute diseases. In Cuba, as in the rest of the world, asthma is a major health problem with significant impact on children. It is noted that viral infections are involved in asthma pathogenesis, especially in pediatric patients. Objective: to identify the influence of Acute High Respiratory Infections (AHRI) in the onset and aggravation of bronchial asthma crisis. Methods: a descriptive, cross-sectional and prospective study was conducted on hospitalized patients due to asthma in the service of respiratory diseases at the Pediatric Teaching Hospital in San Miguel del Padrón, during 2008. Results: the duration of the most common AHRI that triggered the asthma crisis was more than 7 days (54.8%). A total of 188 patients had acute catarrhal nasopharyngitis related to the onset of asthma crisis, which represented 82.4% of the total sample. Conclusions: the age group of 1 to 4 years had more upper respiratory manifestations of possible viral etiology with no noticeable differences in relation to gender. Most patients in this study had viral etiology AHRI (nasopharyngitis), which preceded the onset and aggravation of acute attacks of bronchial asthma.

Keywords : Asthma; Acute High Respiratory Infections; Runny nose; nasopharyngitis.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )