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How regular FeNO testing can help improve patients' quality of life
Asthma exacerbations cause distress and can easily lead to a medical emergency. Here, we look at how regular FeNO testing can be used to help reduce the number of exacerbations and improve quality of life for asthma patients.
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How does asthma affect quality of life?
As a chronic disease with no cure, asthma can affect patients in many ways. Symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and chest tightness can all prevent patients from taking part in certain activities.1 Asthma is also the second most common reason for hospitalisation in children and the fourth most common reason in adults.2 What’s more, increases in asthma exacerbations have been linked to psychiatric disorders, such as depression.1
What are asthma exacerbations?
Asthma exacerbations are commonly known as asthma attacks or flare-ups. They can be described as a worsening in symptoms and lung function compared to a patient’s normal condition.1
Exacerbations are often a reaction to external factors, for example pollen or pollution. They can also be a result of poor medication adherence. The frequency and severity of exacerbations vary a great deal from patient to patient, and severe exacerbations can even occur in those with mild or well-controlled asthma.1
NIOX VERO testing a Child’s FeNO with Mother and Doctor present.
Managing asthma exacerbations
Preventing exacerbations is a vital part of asthma control. It is important that patients have access to relevant information and training, for example in how to use their inhaler.
Traditional asthma management consists of a mix of subjective and objective measures. Subjective measures include clinical history, symptom diaries and quality of life questionnaires. Examples of objective methods are peak flow and spirometry tests.Even though asthma may seem under control, patients may still experience exacerbations.1
What can be done to improve asthma management and reduce the risk of exacerbations?
The Seasonal Asthma Exacerbation Predictive Index (saEPI) has identified eight variables as risk factors for asthma exacerbations, including age, allergic propensity, blood eosinophils, an exacerbation in the previous season, fractional exhaled Nitric Oxide (FeNO) level and ICS dosage.3
What is FeNO?
In the early 1990s, researchers discovered that human lungs produce Nitric Oxide (NO). A couple of years later, they found a connection between airway inflammation and the amount of NO in exhaled breath – asthma patients tend to have higher levels of NO.4
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Whereas traditional lung function testing and spirometry measure airflow, FeNO testing measures airway inflammation. This is really useful additional information because asthma comprises both airway inflammation and airflow limitation.1 In addition, poor airflow and obstructed airways are not always related to asthma as there may be other causes of airflow limitation.5
A FeNO value of <25 parts per billion (ppb) is considered low and indicates a lower likelihood of airway inflammation. A FeNO value of >50 ppb is considered high and indicates that airway inflammation is likely.5 A FeNO level above 50 ppb is a significant risk factor for uncontrolled asthma whilst FeNO ≥ 25 ppb is a strong predictor of asthma exacerbations.6,7
Regular FeNO testing can help to reduce asthma exacerbations
Several recent studies have shown that adjusting treatment based on regular FeNO testing helps to reduce the number of exacerbations significantly. The most comprehensive summary, published by Petsky et al. in 20188, concluded that exacerbations can be reduced by as much as 40-50% with FeNO-guided asthma management.6
It is important to be aware that several factors could influence a person’s FeNO score, including age, allergen exposure, smoking habits and certain foods (such as those rich in nitrate). It is therefore recommended to monitor an individual’s FeNO levels over time and be alert to any changes that could indicate the risk of an exacerbation. The American Thoracic Society (ATS) suggests that an increase greater than 20% for values over 50 ppb or more than 10 ppb for values lower than 50 ppb between visits can be considered a significant increase.5
