Bronchial responsiveness of aged asthmatic patients to bronchodilator and methacholine.

Geriatric asthma is characterized by prolonged illness, lower remission rate, poor response to therapy and higher mortality rate. We studied bronchodilator response and methacholine challenge in 25 aged non-smoking asthmatic patients; thirty-two young asthmatic patients were included as control. The elderly patients had poorer baseline pulmonary function and were more responsive to a bronchodilator than the younger patients. The response to bronchoprovocation did not show any difference between the two groups. Our findings suggested that the airways of elderly asthmatics are as sensitive as those of younger patients and should not be under-treated.