REspiratory diSEAse cohoRt Studies of CHinese Medicine for Asthma (RESEARCH- Asthma)

The number of acute attacks is mainly recorded

Worsening lung function during asthma attacks is characterized by decreased expiratory flow, and the severity of the exacerbation can be graded by the patient's symptoms, lung function, and arterial blood gas analysis.According to the frequency of daytime and nighttime asthma attacks and pulmonary function test results, the patients were divided into 4 grades, namely: 1 intermittent attack; 2 mild persistent; 3 moderate persistent and 4 severe persistent.The severity of the asthma attack was assessed using a rating scale.

Although the patient does not have an acute attack of asthma, there are still symptoms such as wheezing, cough, chest tightness and other symptoms with different frequency and degrees for a long time, which may be accompanied by decreased pulmonary ventilation function. The severity of chronic persistent asthma can be classified into four levels: intermittent, mildly persistent, moderately persistent, and severely persistent, according to the frequency of daytime and nighttime asthma symptoms and the results of pulmonary function tests.The severity of the asthma attack was assessed using a rating scale.

Corticosteroids are the drug of choice for long-term asthma treatment. The vast majority of patients with chronic persistent asthma are well controlled by inhaling low-dose corticosteroids (equivalent to 400 micrograms of budesonide per day).

Beta2 agonists are asthma drugs that stimulate beta2 receptors distributed on airway smooth muscle to produce bronchodilating effects. These drugs are bronchodilators and are the drugs of choice for acute asthma attacks (airway spasm), which can quickly improve symptoms such as dyspnea, cough, etc. If given by inhalation, salbutamol 100-200mcg or terbutaline 250-500mcg at a time and repeat every 20 minutes if necessary.

The ACT score correlates well with the level of asthma control in patients as assessed by experts. The questionnaire included wheezing symptoms, activity limitations, frequency of use of rescue medication, patients' asthma control and self-assessment, with a total of 5 items. Each item is scored on a scale of 1~5, with a total score of 5~25 points, and the higher the score, the better the control of asthma symptoms.

The ACQ questionnaire will measure the quality of life associated with asthma. The ACQ questionnaire consists of either 7 questions (ACQ-7) or 6 questions (ACQ-6). In questions 1-6, patients recalled their experiences from the previous 7 days and answered using a scale of 7 (from 0 = complete control to 6 = very poor control). The seventh question refers to % FEV1 of the reference value and must be completed by the staff of the website. The questionnaire score is the average of either 7 responses (ACQ-7) or 6 responses (ACQ-6). The score is interpreted as follows: 0.75 or less: adequate asthma control. From 0.75 to 1.50: partially controlled asthma. Over 1.50: inadequate asthma control.

It is used to measure the severity of asthma and its impact on patients' quality of life, including 35 items in 5 aspects. The AQLQ score relates to activity limitation, asthma symptoms, psychological condition, response to stimuli, and concern for one's own health, and the form assesses the degree of impact of asthma on a 7-point scale, with a maximum impact of 1 point and no impact of 7 points.

It included 20 items reflecting the subjective feelings of anxiety, and each item was divided into four levels according to the frequency of symptoms, including 15 positive scores and 5 reverse scores. The cut-off value for the standard deviation of SAS is 50 points, with higher scores indicating more severe symptoms of anxiety.Among them, 50 to 59 are classified as mild anxiety, 60 to 69 are classified as moderate anxiety, and more than 69 are severe anxiety.

The SDS Depression and Anxiety Test Form contains 20 items, which are scored on a 4-point scale, with 1 indicating occasional symptoms, 2 indicating sometimes symptoms, 3 indicating frequent symptoms, and 4 indicating persistent symptoms. A rough score is obtained by adding the scores in each of the 20 items. Multiply the rough score by 1.25 and then take the integer part to get the standard score. Generally speaking, depression with a total score of less than 52 is normal, 53-62 is mild depression, 63-72 is moderate depression, and 72 or more is severe depression. The higher the score, the more severe the symptoms.

FVC, FEV1, FEV1 % of the estimated value, FEV1/FVC were mainly used for evaluation.

The measuring instrument uses an exhaled nitric oxide measurement system to record the FeNO value of the patient.