Patients with vocal cord dysfunction and asthma were affected by common risk factors and exhibited similar symptoms, according to recent study results.
Researchers in 2010 contacted 2,756 participants from a 2002-2004 survey in rural Germany that examined potential adverse effects of environmental emission exposure to confined animal feeding operations on asthma and allergies. There were 1,332 participants who completed surveys that classified their asthma and VCD-like symptoms.
Four percent of participants reported VCD-like symptoms; 8% had asthma symptoms; and 2% exhibited VCD-like and asthma symptoms.
Asthma was associated with male sex (OR=1.83; 95% CI, 1.2-2.78), smoking (OR=1.71; 95% CI, 1.07-2.71), parental allergies (OR=1.6; 95% CI, 1.06-2.43), low ratio of force expiration in 1 second to force vital capacity (quartile 1 vs. 3, OR=2.24; 95% CI, 1.16-4.33; quartile 1 vs. 4, OR=2.46; 95% CI, 1.29-4.7) and low score for Short Form-12 (SF12) physical domain (quartile 1 vs. 4, OR=2.8; 95% CI, 1.5-5.25).
