Exercise training as an adjunctive therapy to montelukast in children with mild asthma

Abstract

Background: This study investigated the effectiveness and safety of exercise training (ET) as an adjunctive therapy to montelukast for children with mild asthma (MA). Methods: A total of 72 children, ages 4 to 12 years with MA were randomly assigned to a treatment group or a control group at a ratio of 1:1. The subjects in the treatment group received ET plus montelukast, while the participants in the control group received montelukast alone. The primary endpoint was lung function, as measured by forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV 1 ) and ratio between FEV 1 and forced vital capacity (FEV 1 /FVC). The secondary endpoints included the symptom improvements, as measured by clinical assessment score, and quality of life (QoL), as assessed with Paediatric Allergic Disease Quality of Life Questionnaire (PADQLQ) scores. In addition, adverse events were also assessed during the period of this study. All outcomes were measured at baseline, at the end of 6-week treatment and 2-week follow-up after the treatment. Results: After 6-week treatment and 2-week follow-up, although ET plus montelukast did not show better effectiveness in improving lung function, as evaluated by the FEV 1 ( P > .05) and FEV 1 /FVC ( P > .05) than montelukast alone, significant relief in clinical symptoms ( P < .01), and improvement in QoL ( P < .01) have achieved. Additionally, both groups had similar safety profile. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that ET as an adjunctive therapy to montelukast may benefit for children with MA. Further studies are still needed to warrant the results of this study.

Effects of continuous aerobic exercise on lung function and quality of life with asthma: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Basaran et al (30) indicated that changes in symptom scores significantly correlated with changes in total QoL scores, which was also reported by França-Pintoet al (42). Zhang et al (45) observed that asthmatics' wheezing, coughing, and sleep improved significantly in an exercise group. These reports found that regular aerobic exercise promotes the overall quality of life of asthmatic patients as demonstrated by physical fitness, asthma symptoms, and psychosocial factors (18,19).…”

“…F E V 1 / F V C % w a s i n c l u d e d i n 7 a r t i c l e s (26,30,34,36,37,42,45) at the end of training programs, and a fixed-effects model revealed no effectiveness of aerobic exercise (I 2 =0.0%, WMD: 0.27, 95% CI: −0.43 to 0.98, P=0.443) (Figure 4).…”

“…Twenty-two trials involving the randomization of 874 participants assessing the effect of aerobic exercise on lung function or quality of life in asthmatic patients were published between 1990 and 2019. Of these, the patients in 12 articles (25)(26)(27)(29)(30)(31)(32)34,36,41,44,45) were children. Six studies involved individuals with moderate or severe persistent asthma, and others had mild to moderate persistent asthma.…”

“…assessed the pooled fixed-effect model of 11 studies(24,26,27,29,30,32,33,38,42,44,45) with 439 participants. There was no difference between two groups after aerobic training (I 2 =36.0%, WMD: 0.68, 95% CI: −0.64 to 2.01, P=0.312) whether in adults (P=0.808) or children (P=0.325) as participants.…”

Moving more: physical activity and its positive effects on long term conditions in children and young people

“…The main burden in asthma is reduced control manifesting as exacerbations. Importantly, children and young people with asthma perceive improvement in their asthma control and a reduction in asthma related symptoms following physical activity4–6 and report enjoyment and improved quality of life (QOL) from taking part in physical activity programmes 7. However, there is no clear evidence to support a correlation between QOL and the volume, intensity, or duration of the physical activity required to achieve improvement.…”