Early-life events linked to lung health in young adulthood

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-11/ki-eel111120.php

 

News Release 12-Nov-2020
Karolinska Institutet

 

Early-life events, such as the exposure to air pollutants, increases the risk of chronic lung disease in young adulthood, according to new results by researchers at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, published in the European Respiratory Journal and Thorax. The studies add to the growing evidence that chronic lung disease in adulthood can be traced back to childhood.

Chronic bronchitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), with the hallmark features phlegm and irreversible airflow limitation, respectively, are lung diseases known to affect adults with a history of long-term smoking.

"To our surprise, we found the prevalence of chronic bronchitis and irreversible airflow limitation to be rather high (5.5% and 2.0%, respectively), considering the young age of the study participants." says senior author Erik Melen, professor and paediatrician , Department of Clinical Science and Education, Karolinska Institutet, Sodersjukhuset.

"Those diseases are usually diagnosed in patients older than 50 years of age", comments further co-author Anders Linden, professor and pulmonologist, Institute of Environmental Medicine.


•••••