Exercise-Induced Bronchoconstriction in Athletes

Some Epidemiological Aspects of Bronchial Asthma in Children in Qena Governorate, Egypt

“…It was estimated that more than 10% of the general population and up to 90% of persons previously diagnosed with asthma have exercise induced bronchoconstriction (EIB). Furthermore, the prevalence of EIB in athletes ranges from 11 to 50%, while it approaches 90% in athletes with asthma [39]. In our cases, factors precipitating acute exacerbations of bronchial asthma were noxious fumes inhalation, exposure to house dust, environmental factors, viral upper respiratory tract infections, cold air exposure, parental smoking, food allergy, psychological factors, and drugs like sulfonamides and aspirin.…”

Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm in Soccer Athletes Living in a Tropical Humid Region

“…Some sports organizations have established EIB screening programs for all of their internationally competitive athletes but this is far from being a consensus [35]. On the other hand, it is clear that individuals with exercise associated respiratory complaints and/or a clinical diagnosis of asthma that are engaged in competitive sportive activities should be evaluated for EIB [3,8,9,12,15,20,24,35].…”

“…Self-reported respiratory symptoms after strenuous exercise is a common complaint in athletes but are deemed as non-reliable for EIB diagnosis [9,10]. In elite athletes the lack of adequate EIB recognition and prevention could impair maximal physical performance [11] and it is recommended that those who report respiratory symptoms should perform objective diagnostic tests to guide a correct diagnosis, a more appropriate training schedule and the pharmacological prevention [12].…”

Dyspneic athlete

“…Clinical manifestations are variable and range from complaints of poor performance to severe bronchospasm and respiratory failure [9]. Shortness of breath starts at least 5-10 minutes into exercise as workloads of at least 80 % maximum oxygen consumption for 5-8 minutes are required to induce EIB [9].…”

“…Shortness of breath starts at least 5-10 minutes into exercise as workloads of at least 80 % maximum oxygen consumption for 5-8 minutes are required to induce EIB [9]. If patients exhibit symptoms sooner than this EIB is less likely and other diagnosis such as PVFMD should be considered [9].…”