Association between quality of life, severity of asthma, sleep disorders and exercise capacity in children with asthma: a cross-sectional study

Objective: To assess the association between quality of life, asthma severity, sleep disorders Asthma; and exercise capacity in children with asthma. Methods: We evaluated 45 children with asthma of both sexes aged between 7 and 12 years, Dyspnea diagnosed by a pediatrician/pulmonologist and classified according to the IV Brazilian Guide- lines for Asthma Management: severity (intermittent/mild and moderate/severe) and control (controlled, partially controlled and uncontrolled). Quality of life (QoL), presence of sleep disorders and exercise capacity were respectively assessed using the following instruments: Pediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (PAQLQ); Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (SDSC); and six-minute step test (6MST). Results: Intermittent/mild and moderate/severe asthma were observed in 51.1% and 48.9% of the children evaluated, respectively. Only 8.89% of the sample had uncontrolled asthma. In the regression model, a better QoL was observed in children with lower asthma severity, lower SDSC total score and lower levels of dyspnea induced by the 6MST (beta=-0.395, p= 0.003; beta= -0.338, p= 0.011; beta= -0.352, p = 0.008; respectively). These factors explained 31% of the PAQLQ total score variation. Other variables (such as cardiorespiratory variables, spirometry, asthma control and number of steps in 6MST) did not predict quality of life. Conclusions: Lower asthma severity (intermittent/mild), fewer symptoms of sleep disorder, and lower exercise-induced dyspnea predicts better quality of life in children with asthma. (C) 2018 Associacao Brasileira de Pesquisa e Pos-Graduacao em Fisioterapia. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.