Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27044366›Full record

ArticleBMC pulmonary medicine2016

Detailed analysis of sputum and systemic inflammation in asthma phenotypes: are paucigranulocytic asthmatics really non-inflammatory?

Sophie Demarche, Florence Schleich, Monique Henket, Virginie Paulus, Thierry Van Hees, Renaud Louis

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC pulmonary medicine, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 44 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
44citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
6.0field-weighted citation impact, top 3% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

44 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 103 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Non-T2 asthma.Current opinion in pulmonary medicine · 2025
    Review
  6. Review
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Review
  10. Article
  11. Review
  12. Review
  13. Methodological Aspects of Induced Sputum.Advances in respiratory medicine · 2023
    Review
  14. Cytokine-targeted therapies for asthma and COPD.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2023
    Review
  15. Phenotype overlap in the natural history of asthma.European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society · 2023
    Review
  16. Review
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Sophie DemarcheDepartment of Respiratory Medicine, CHU Liege, Sart-Tilman B35, 4000, Liege, Belgium. sophie.demarche@ulg.ac.be.
Florence SchleichDepartment of Respiratory Medicine, CHU Liege, Sart-Tilman B35, 4000, Liege, Belgium.
Monique HenketDepartment of Respiratory Medicine, CHU Liege, Sart-Tilman B35, 4000, Liege, Belgium.
Virginie PaulusDepartment of Respiratory Medicine, CHU Liege, Sart-Tilman B35, 4000, Liege, Belgium.
Thierry Van HeesDepartment of Clinical and Hospital Pharmacy, University of Liege, Liege, Belgium.
Renaud LouisDepartment of Respiratory Medicine, CHU Liege, Sart-Tilman B35, 4000, Liege, Belgium.
University of Liège · BE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe technique of induced sputum has allowed to subdivide asthma patients into inflammatory phenotypes according to their level of granulocyte airway infiltration. There are very few studies which looked at detailed sputum and blood cell counts in a large cohort of asthmatics divided into inflammatory phenotypes. The purpose of this study was to analyze sputum cell counts, blood leukocytes and systemic inflammatory markers in these phenotypes, and investigate how those groups compared with healthy subjects.

methodsWe conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study on 833 asthmatics recruited from the University Asthma Clinic of Liege and compared them with 194 healthy subjects. Asthmatics were classified into inflammatory phenotypes.

resultsThe total non-squamous cell count per gram of sputum was greater in mixed granulocytic and neutrophilic phenotypes as compared to eosinophilic, paucigranulocytic asthma and healthy subjects (p < 0.005). Sputum eosinophils (in absolute values and percentages) were increased in all asthma phenotypes including paucigranulocytic asthma, compared to healthy subjects (p < 0.005). Eosinophilic asthma showed higher absolute sputum neutrophil and lymphocyte counts than healthy subjects (p < 0.005), while neutrophilic asthmatics had a particularly low number of sputum macrophages and epithelial cells. All asthma phenotypes showed an increased blood leukocyte count compared to healthy subjects (p < 0.005), with paucigranulocytic asthmatics having also increased absolute blood eosinophils compared to healthy subjects (p < 0.005). Neutrophilic asthma had raised CRP and fibrinogen while eosinophilic asthma only showed raised fibrinogen compared to healthy subjects (p < 0.005).

conclusionsThis study demonstrates that a significant eosinophilic inflammation is present across all categories of asthma, and that paucigranulocytic asthma may be seen as a low grade inflammatory disease.

Indexed as

AdultAgedAsthmaCase-Control StudiesC-Reactive ProteinCross-Sectional StudiesEosinophilsFemaleFibrinogenGranulocytesHumansInflammationLeukocyte CountLymphocyte CountMacrophagesMaleC-Reactive ProteinFibrinogenAsthmaBlood leukocyte countCRPFibrinogenHealthy subjectsPhenotypesSputum cytology

Identifiers

PMID27044366
PMCPMC4820945
OpenAlexW2339852312

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.