Hyperventilation syndrome in adolescents with and without asthma

SummaryBackground Data on the prevalence of hyperventilation syndrome (HVS) in adolescents are scanty. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of HVS in a population of adolescents with and without asthma, and to verify whether HVS was related to asthma activity. Methods: A population of adolescents was asked to self-complete a questionnaire, including the Nijmegen questionnaire to assess HVS, and a standardized asthma questionnaire. Results: Seven hundred and sixty questionnaires were suitable for analysis. One hundred and twenty subjects (15.8%) were classified as asthmatic. Forty-seven subjects (6.2%) had a Nijmegen score ≥23, which was suggestive of HVS. Symptoms indicative of HVS were ten times more common in subjects with asthma (25%) than in those without asthma (2.5%). Nijmegen score was significantly higher in subjects with lifetime asthma (P