Asthma in the Elderly

Background There is a distinct lack of information on the prognosis of asthma in the elderly. Methods In order to compare mortality rates of elderly people with and without asthma and to identify mortality risk factors in those with asthma, 1,233 ambulatory patients aged ≥ 65 years with a diagnosis of asthma (n = 210) or chronic nonrespiratory conditions (n = 1,023) were enrolled in a multicentric study. Patients underwent baseline spirometry and multidimensional assessment and were then followed up for a mean of 57.9 months (SD 16.9). We compared mortality rates in the two groups and identified predictors of death using multivariable survival analysis. Results The 5-year mortality rate in …