Is asthma in the elderly a disease of the peripheral airways?

与年轻哮喘患者相比，老年哮喘患者的临床预后较差。原因尚不清楚，但可能与疾病本身的年龄相关变化有关。在这个项目中，我们的目标是表明老年人哮喘以非常小的外周气道异常为主，而年轻患者的异常发生在较大的呼吸道。这一结果将为针对老年人哮喘的新的、更有针对性的治疗策略提供基础。

Elderly asthmatics have poorer clinical outcomes compared with younger asthmatics. The reasons for this are unclear but may involve age-related changes in the disease itself. In this project we aim to show that asthma in the elderly is dominated by abnormalities of very small peripheral airways, in contrast to younger patients where the abnormalities occur in larger airways. The results will provide the basis for new and better targeted treatment strategies for asthma in the elderly.