The Occurrence, Recrudescence, and Worsening of Asthma in a Population of Young Adults

Factors Associated with Self-evaluated Severity of Illness and Quality of Life in Male Israeli Asthmatic Soldiers

“…Canonical discriminant coefficients of variables predicting group allocation (mild, moderate or severe self-evaluated degree of asthma disease during service) ings in both Israeli [17], and non-Israeli [15,16] asthmatic soldiers. This deterioration has been shown in the participants' rating of their asthma severity, as well as in the reported increase in the number of asthmatic attacks per year and in the use of asthma-related treatment modalities and medications during service.…”

“…This deterioration has been shown in the participants' rating of their asthma severity, as well as in the reported increase in the number of asthmatic attacks per year and in the use of asthma-related treatment modalities and medications during service. Serving in the army can increase the likelihood to an overall worse course of an asthmatic disorder because of several environmental, occupational, and psychosocial processes [17]. The army requires the soldier to adjust to changes that are often unwelcome within a brief period of time, although the soldier is often not prepared and accustomed to such challenges, and increases frustration and distress resulting from perceived lack of appreciation from superiors when not having the option to resist such attitudes [12,13].…”

“…Another 141 soldiers (79%) were defined as professional (mainly mechanical) workers, engaged in fixing, reconditioning and lubrication, welding and braising, or painting under open sheds. These soldiers are exposed to mixtures of organic solvents, usually including toluene and xylene [17]. According to the instructions of the Israeli army, verified by the findings of a previous study in Israeli asthmatic soldiers [17], the levels of ferrum oxides, lead, nickel, and cadmium in these solvents, routinely monitored by qualified approved laboratories, are all within <5% of the threshold limit value, and the air samples are in the range of 1-20% of the threshold limit value, all being in accordance with the accepted ranges of the American Conference of Governmental Industry Hygienists.…”

“…In the present study, almost 80% of the soldiers, who were professional workers, were exposed to organic solvents that may adversely affect their asthmatic condition. The working environment in the army may be one of the factors accounting for the increase in the annual rate of asthmatic attacks during service [17]. Another explanation relates to the relatively low treatment compliance, i.e., less than 50% of the soldiers were routinely using preventive treatment.…”

Health Surveillance in the U.S. Navy: Asthma

“…Exercise induced asthma can often occur as a manifestation of asthma that may not readily be detected during screening for military service (5). Of 59,058 Israeli army recruits, 1% developed asthma during 30 months, with exerciseassociated symptoms as an early indicator (6). Although asthma in young adults is responsible for considerable morbidity, few systematic studies of the incidence of first hospitalizations for asthma in young adult populations have been published (7,8).…”