Ethnic variation in asthma phenotypic presentation and outcomes: a cross-sectional analysis of the UK Biobank

• Published in: Thorax Vol. 79; no. 2; pp. 186 - 190
• Main Authors: Busby, John, McDowell, P Jane, Pfeffer, Paul E, Mansur, Adel Hasan, Heaney, Liam G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and British Thoracic Society 01.02.2024; BMJ Publishing Group LTD
• Subjects: Air pollution; Asian people; Asthma; Biobanks; Biological Specimen Banks; Body mass index; Clinical outcomes; Country of birth; Cross-Sectional Studies; Cultural differences; Demographics; Ethnicity; Health care; Health disparities; Health literacy; Hospitalization; Humans; Hypertension; Immigrants; Inequalities; Nitrogen dioxide; Outdoor air quality; Psoriasis; Short report; Steroids; UK Biobank; United Kingdom > UK; Ireland; Ethnicity; Inequalities; Asthma
• ISSN: 0040-6376; 1468-3296
• DOI: 10.1136/thorax-2023-221101

Ethnic disparities exist within asthma; however, country of birth is rarely investigated. We described demographic and clinical characteristics by ethnicity and country of birth within the UK Biobank. Lung function and asthma hospitalisations were similar for white, black and North-East Asian participants, however, South-East (SE) Asians more commonly had an FEV1 below the lower limits of normal (LLN; 53.8% vs 32.3%, p<0.001), blood eosinophilia (38.6% vs 23.8%, p<0.001) and asthma hospitalisation (12.5% vs 8.3%, p<0.001) than white participants. First-generation SE Asian immigrants had poorer lung function (57.7% vs 27.7% FEV1 below LLN, p<0.001) than UK/Ireland born participants. These data demonstrate inter-ethnic and intra-ethnic disparities.