Ardura Garcia, CristinaCristinaArdura GarciaPedersen, Eva Sophie LundeEva Sophie LundePedersen0000-0003-0293-9954Mallet, Maria ChristinaMaria ChristinaMalletde Jong, Carmen Cornelia MariaCarmen Cornelia Mariade JongBarben, JuergJuergBarbenJochmann, AnjaAnjaJochmannJung, AndreasAndreasJungMueller-Suter, DominikDominikMueller-SuterRegamey, NicolasNicolasRegameySinger, FlorianFlorianSingerKühni, ClaudiaClaudiaKühni2024-10-052024-10-052022-04https://boris-portal.unibe.ch/handle/20.500.12422/54087BACKGROUND Asthma treatment should be modified according to symptom control and future risk, but there is scarce data on what drives treatment adjustments in routine tertiary care. OBJECTIVE We studied factors that drive asthma treatment adjustment in paediatric outpatient clinics. METHODS We did a cross-sectional analysis of the Swiss Paediatric Airway Cohort (SPAC), a clinical cohort of 0-16-year-old children seen by paediatric pulmonologists. We collected information on diagnosis, treatment, lung function and Fractional exhaled Nitric Oxide (FeNO) from hospital records; and on symptoms, sociodemographic and environmental factors from a parental questionnaire. We used reported symptoms to classify asthma control and categorised treatment following the 2020 GINA guidelines. We used multivariable logistic regression to study factors associated with treatment adjustment (step-up or down vs. no change). RESULTS We included 551 children diagnosed with asthma (mean age 10 years, 37% female). At the clinical visit, most children were prescribed GINA Step 3 (35%). Compared to pre-visit treatment, 252 (47%) children remained on the same step, 227 (42%) were stepped-up and 58 (11%) were stepped-down. Female sex (aOR 1.61, 95% CI 1.05-2.47), poor asthma control (3.08, 1.72-5.54), and a lower Forced Expiratory Volume in the first second (FEV1) Z-score (0.70, 0.56-0.86 per 1 Z-score increase) were independently associated with treatment step-up, and low FeNO (2.34, 1.23-4.45) with treatment step-down, with a marked heterogeneity between clinics. CONCLUSION In this tertiary care real-life study, we identified main drivers for asthma treatment adjustment. These findings may help improve both asthma management guidelines and clinical practice.enasthma management children clinical practice600 - Technology::610 - Medicine & health300 - Social sciences, sociology & anthropology::360 - Social problems & social servicesarticle10.48350/1606673469559710.1016/j.jaip.2021.10.026