Association Between Clinical Severity of Childhood Asthma and Serum Leptin Levels

To investigate the association between the clinical severity of childhood asthma and serum leptin levels, to define whether the severity of asthma correlates with body mass index (BMI) or serum leptin levels and to examine the sensitivity of leptin levels in predicting asthma severity. This study was conducted in 65 patients, aged 2 to 14 yrs with newly diagnosed asthma without any chronic co-morbidity. The subjects were distributed into three groups according to the severity of asthma. Intra-group serum leptin levels before and after treatment did not show significant difference (p > 0.05). Inter-group pre-treatment leptin levels were different significantly (p < 0.01) and the difference originated from Group I and III as well as Group II and III. No correlation existed between leptin levels and BMI (p > 0.05). Leptin levels correlated with the clinical severity of asthma and this was suggested to be associated with the severity of inflammation in asthma. More studies are required to evaluate leptin levels in predicting asthma severity.