Asthma and lung structure on computed tomography: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis Lung Study

Background The potential consequences of asthma in childhood and young adulthood on lung structure in older adults have not been studied in a large, population-based cohort. Objective The authors hypothesized that a history of asthma onset in childhood (age 18 years or before) or young adulthood (age 19-45 years) was associated with altered lung structure on computed tomography in later life. Methods The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis Lung Study recruited 3965 participants and assessed asthma history by using standardized questionnaires, guideline-based spirometry, and segmental airway dimensions and percentage of low attenuation area (%LAA) on computed tomographic scans. Results Asthma with onset in childhood and young adulthood was associated with large decrements in FEV1 among participants with a mean age of 66 years (−365 mL and −343 mL, respectively; P