Safety of methacholine challenges in a multicenter pediatric asthma study.

摘要

Pharmacologic provocation challenges to evaluate bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) are used as a clinical tool to confirm the diagnosis of asthma in special situations and as a research outcome measure to determine mechanisms and treatment efficacy. BHR is related to various measures of asthma severity and has also been reported as a predictor of persistent asthma and airflow limitation in adulthood. Most recently, its application as a tool for determining treatment modification has been found to be effective not only at improving clinical parameters of asthma control but also at alleviating airway inflammation. Given the relevant applications of bronchoprovocation tests, it is important to standardize and guarantee safety for use in patients. Human subject safety boards and ethics committees are requesting investigators to provide more accurate safety assessments.