Asthma Control and Quality of Life Assessment

Asthma control and quality of life assessment occupy a central position in both clinical management and research. Asthma control refers to the extent to which the manifestations of the disease are minimised by therapeutic interventions and the goals of treatment are achieved. It is typically measured by validated tools such as the Asthma Control Test (ACT) and the Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ), which capture symptoms, rescue medication use and activity limitation. Quality of life evaluation examines the patient’s perceived physical, emotional, social and occupational well-being in relation to asthma, often through instruments like the Mini-Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (Mini-AQLQ) or generic measures of health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Together, these assessments guide treatment adjustments, offer benchmarks for population-level studies and elucidate the personal and economic burden of suboptimal control. Recent advances emphasise the integration of digital monitoring, identification of distinct inflammatory endotypes and the role of comorbidities in shaping both control and well-being, underscoring a holistic approach that aligns physiological measures with patient-reported outcomes.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent findings have illuminated the multidimensional impact of uncontrolled asthma on general health. One study in adult-onset asthma demonstrated that patients with partially controlled or uncontrolled disease had significantly lower scores across ten of fifteen domains in a generic HRQoL instrument, including mobility, sleeping, mental function and vitality. Poorer post-bronchodilator lung function (FEV1), female sex and the presence of depression were independently associated with reduced quality of life, highlighting intersecting physiological and psychosocial determinants. These results reinforce the requirement for routine assessment of both control status and broader quality of life indicators to inform personalised management strategies.

Asthma Control and Quality of Life Assessment publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in asthma control and quality of life assessment across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Asthma Control Test (ACT): A patient-completed questionnaire that quantifies asthma control based on symptoms and activity limitation.

Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ): A clinician-validated tool measuring control via symptom frequency, rescue medication use and lung function.

Mini-Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (Mini-AQLQ): A disease-specific instrument evaluating the impact of asthma on symptoms, activities, emotions and environmental exposure.

Health-related quality of life (HRQoL): A multidimensional concept reflecting the physical, psychological and social aspects of health as reported by the patient.

Forced Expiratory Volume in one second (FEV1): The volume of air exhaled in the first second of a forced breath, indicative of airway obstruction.

References

1. Effect of asthma control on general health-related quality of life in patients diagnosed with adult-onset asthma. Scientific Reports (2019).
2. Asthma control among treated US asthma patients in Practice Fusion’s electronic medical record research database. npj Primary Care Respiratory Medicine (2023).
3. An Assessment of Quality of Life in Patients With Asthma Through Physical, Emotional, Social, and Occupational Aspects. A Cross-Sectional Study. Frontiers in Public Health (2022).