Undiagnosed exercise-induced bronchoconstriction in ski-mountaineers.

Because the practise conditions put the ski-mountaineering athletes potentially at risk for exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB), this study was conducted to estimate the prevalence of EIB in this population. Thirty-one highly-trained ski-mountaineers with racing experience participating in the race were evaluated. EIB was determined after a European race at high altitude and frigid conditions. Pre-race investigations included pulmonary function measurements and a questionnaire enquiring about i) training habits, ii) respiratory history during training and/or competition. Pulmonary function was also tested after the race. None of the athletes reported a basal airway obstruction. Two groups were determined after post-race airway response: i) EIB (+) group exhibiting a fall in FEV (1) > or = 10 % (n = 15) and ii) EIB (-) without fall in FEV (1) or fall < 10 % (n = 16). Neither training habits nor baseline lung function were associated with the post-race airway response. Six of the 31 ski-mountaineers had a previous physician-made diagnosis of asthma and/or EIB, nevertheless 23 of our athletes complained about at least one characteristic symptom of asthma during practise. Four of our 15 EIB (+) had a previous physician-made diagnosis of asthma/EIB indicating that 73 % of EIB (+) athletes were undiagnosed for EIB. The proportion of allergic athletes was not significantly different between EIB (+) and EIB (-). This study showed that approximatively half of highly-trained ski-mountaineers with racing experience can develop EIB after a race and that 73 % of them are unaware of the problem.

Reduction of exercise-induced asthma in children by short, repeated warm ups.

AIM: To study the effect of a warm up schedule on exercise-induced asthma in asthmatic children to enable them to engage in asthmogenic activities. METHOD: In the first study, peak flows during and after three short, repeated warm up schedules (SRWU 1, 2, and 3), identical in form but differing in intensity, were compared in 16 asthmatic children. In the second study the efficiency of the best of these SRWU schedules was tested on 30 young asthmatic children. Children performed on different days a 7 minute run alone (EX1) or the same run after an SRWU (EX2). RESULTS: The second study showed that for most children (24/30) the fall in peak flow after EX2 was less than that after EX1. The percentage fall in peak flow after EX2 was significantly correlated with the percentage change in peak flow induced by SRWU2 (r = 0.68). The children were divided into three subgroups according to the change in peak flow after SRWU2: (G1: increase in peak flow; G2: < 15% fall in peak flow; G3: > 15% fall in peak flow). Only the children in the G3 subgroup did not show any gain in peak flow after EX2 compared with EX1. CONCLUSION: The alteration in peak flow at the end of the SRWU period was a good predictor of the occurrence of bronchoconstriction after EX2. An SRWU reduced the decrease in peak flow for most of the children (24/30) in this series, thus reducing subsequent post-exercise deep bronchoconstriction.