Authors
Suresh Anantharaj, Ashwini Sathish, Suganya N
Published in
Cureus. Volume 18. Issue 9. Pages e115818. Epub Sep 05, 2026.
Abstract
Introduction The Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) and Asthma Control Test (ACT) are widely used to assess asthma control but are more time-consuming than the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) level of control (LoC), a simpler tool that is commonly used in busy clinical settings. Despite the substantial impact of asthma on quality of life, quality-of-life assessment is performed less frequently than assessment of asthma control. This study aimed to evaluate the correlation between the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ) and measures of asthma control, including the ACQ and GINA LoC. The primary objective was to compare the strength of the correlations of the ACQ and GINA LoC with the AQLQ. Methods Patients with partly controlled or uncontrolled asthma, as defined by the GINA LoC, were recruited after confirmation of the diagnosis by spirometry (post-bronchodilator increase in FEV₁ and/or FVC of >200 mL and >12%) or peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) criteria (post-bronchodilator improvement in PEFR ≥20%). Baseline demographic and clinical characteristics, including symptoms, smoking status, treatment, and comorbidities, were recorded. All participants completed the AQLQ and ACQ. Correlations of the AQLQ with the ACQ, GINA LoC, and pulmonary function parameters were analyzed. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used to assess the relationships between the AQLQ, pulmonary function parameters (FEV₁ and PEFR), and asthma control measures (ACQ and GINA LoC). Categorical variables, including age distribution and sex, were analyzed using the chi-square test. Results Among the 83 patients with asthma, 32 (38.6%) had partly controlled asthma, while 51 (61.4%) had uncontrolled asthma. The mean age and body mass index (BMI) were 43 ± 14.5 years and 28.3 ± 3.9 kg/m², respectively. The proportions of females, patients with more than two symptoms, a positive family history of asthma, allergic rhinitis, and gastroesophageal reflux disease were 47 (56.6%), 17 (20.5%), 28 (33.7%), 17 (20.5%), and nine (10.8%), respectively. The mean ACQ score, AQLQ score, pre-bronchodilator FEV₁ (% predicted), and PEFR (% predicted) were 2.08, 4.4, 58.6%, and 71%, respectively. The ACQ demonstrated a strong negative correlation with the AQLQ (r = -0.60, p < 0.001), whereas the GINA LoC showed a weak negative correlation with the AQLQ (r = -0.28, p = 0.01). A weak positive correlation was observed between the ACQ and GINA LoC (r = 0.38, p < 0.001). Among pulmonary functions, FEV₁ showed a weak positive correlation with the AQLQ (r = 0.22, p = 0.046) and a weak negative correlation with the GINA LoC (r = -0.24, p = 0.029). PEFR demonstrated a moderate negative correlation with the GINA LoC (r = -0.40, p < 0.001). Conclusion Although the ACQ is more time-consuming than the GINA LoC, it demonstrated a stronger correlation with asthma-specific quality of life and may be a better predictor of quality of life in adults with asthma.
PMID:
42835283
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 06 Oct 2026.
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