Effects of small airway dysfunction on the clinical expression of asthma: a focus on asthma symptoms and bronchial hyper-responsiveness

Small and large airway dysfunction poorly associate with asthma symptoms in our patients. However, deteriorations in small airway dysfunction are strongly related to an increase in dyspnea during bronchial provocation with methacholine. Small airway dysfunction contributes also independently to the clinical expression of asthma, as reflected by the severity of BHR.