Active Lungs & Breathing NIHR-supported project Digestion, Kidneys & Other Organs

Identification of Future Asthma Attack Risk in Children with Clinical Tests

Funder NIHR (part of DHSC)
Recipient organisation NIHR Guy's and St Thomas' Clinical Research Facility
NIHR support Recorded as supported by this research centre
Period Jan 2025 — Mar 2028

In plain English

AI plain-English summary

A simple finger-prick blood test could tell doctors which children with asthma or preschool wheeze are heading for a serious attack in the next few months. Asthma attacks in children are frightening and dangerous, but doctors currently lack a reliable way to predict which child will have one. This study tests whether measuring a type of white blood cell called eosinophils—either alone or combined with a breath test for nitric oxide (FeNO) and standard lung function tests—can forecast an attack three to four months ahead. The researchers will also check whether these tests are practical and acceptable in a busy clinic. If the predictive score works, it would give clinicians a concrete, objective tool to identify high-risk children early. That could allow targeted preventive treatment—such as adjusting medication or stepping up monitoring—before an attack happens. It would also spare low-risk children from unnecessary treatment. The tests themselves are quick and non-invasive, so they could become a routine part of asthma check-ups, quietly reducing hospital visits and improving day-to-day life for thousands of families.

View original technical description
This study aims to improve the lives of children with pre-school wheeze or asthma by developing a predictive score to identify those at risk of a future wheeze or asthma attack. Biomarkers are indicators that can be measured easily to assess physiological processes. This study will include biomarkers of inflammation; blood cells called eosinophils and a breath test called exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO). In addition, breathing tests to assess how the lungs are working (lung function) will be measured. The aim is to identify the predictive value of blood eosinophils alone, or combined with FeNO, and/or lung function tests to identify children at risk of a future asthma attack in the next 3-4 months. There are three main aims. Aim 1 to see if blood eosinophil count can predict wheeze or asthma attacks in the following 3-4 months. Aim 2 to see if lung function and/or FeNO and/or symptom control, with/without eosinophil count predicts asthma attacks in the following 3-4 months.Aim 3 to prove the feasibility and acceptability of blood finger prick test, breath tests and lung function tests in a pragmatic clinic setting. Recruitment will occur in paediatric respiratory clinics, targeting children aged 1-16 years with a confirmed asthma diagnosis, or recurrent episodes of wheezing. All tests will be conducted over a year, at the time of the patient's clinic appointments.

Researchers

Sejal Saglani (Principal Investigator)

Related Research

Grants with similar aims, by meaning.

Utility of point-of-care Blood Eosinophils and Exhaled Nitric Oxide as biomarkers in predicting childhood asthma attacks: a pragmatic real-world observational study (BEENO)
Remote monitoring to predict and prevent asthma attacks in preschool children
Utility of urinary metabolomic profiling in children to predict acute wheeze: a prospective observational feasibility study – The Children with wheeze and asthma and their metabolomic profiles - study
Pulmonary epithelial barrier and immunological functions at birth and in early life: key determinants of the development of asthma? Severe wheeze and asthma validation study
High throughput mechanical mapping of group 2 innate lymphoid cells in lung inflammation

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