Bronchial asthma in the elderly: diagnostic features, clinical course, and treatment approaches

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Abstract

Globally, the number of elderly patients is growing. It is expected that by 2050, this age group will account for 17% of the global population. As the number of patients over 65 years of age increases, understanding of disease development and clinical features, treatment approaches, and the issue of patient comorbidity are changing. Bronchial asthma in the elderly remains poorly understood. Determining the exact prevalence of bronchial asthma in the elderly is difficult. However, several studies have shown that the prevalence of bronchial asthma in the elderly ranges from 1.8 to 10.9%, is more common in men, and tends to increase over time. This is primarily due to the lack of universal diagnostic criteria in older adults, comorbidity, immunosenescence, heterogeneity of clinical and functional manifestations of the disease, poor patient perception of symptoms, difficulty conducting functional tests, and the lack of response to standard therapy. Therefore, further study of the characteristics of bronchial asthma in this cohort is necessary to improve diagnosis, treatment, and quality of life in elderly patients.

About the authors

Viliya V. Gaynitdinova

I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University (Sechenov University)

Email: ivv_08@mail.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0001-9928-926X

Dr. Sci. (Med.), Professor, Department of Pulmonology, N.V. Sklifosovsky

Russian Federation, Moscow

Alena A. Aleksandrova

Central Clinical Hospital with Polyclinic of the Administrative Directorate of the President of the Russian Federation

Author for correspondence.
Email: doc.aleksandrovaalena@mail.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0003-2334-0801

Pulmonologist

Russian Federation, Moscow

Svetlana A. Evdokimova

Central Clinical Hospital with Polyclinic of the Administrative Directorate of the President of the Russian Federation

Email: Evdokimovasa@yandex.ru
ORCID iD: 0009-0001-3120-0545

Cand. Sci. (Med.), Head of the Pulmonology Department

Russian Federation, Moscow

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