Asthma diagnosis and treatment Original articles Aspirin sensitivity and severity of asthma: Evidence for irreversible airway obstruction in patients with severe or difficult-to-treat asthma

compared with subjects with non‐aspirin-sensitive asthma (75.3% vs 79.9%, P < .001). Differences in spirometry between the 2 cohorts persisted after controlling for potential confounding variables. In addition, subjects with AERD were more likely to have severe asthma by means of physician assessment (66% vs 49%, P < .001), to have been intubated (20% vs 11%, P <.001), to have a steroid burst in the previous 3 months (56% vs 46%, P < .001), and to have required highdose inhaled corticosteroids (34% vs 26%, P < .001). Conclusions: These data suggest that aspirin sensitivity is associated with increased asthma severity and possible remodeling of both the upper and lower airways. (J Allergy Clin Immunol 2005;116:970-5.)