Strengths, pitfalls, and lessons from longitudinal childhood asthma cohorts of children followed up into adult life

Abstract

Asthma is a common problem worldwide and longitudinal studies of children followed up into adult life enable the assessment of clinical outcomes, examine the pattern of lung function outcomes, and importantly provide insight into aetiology and prognosis for patients with asthma. The aim of this review is to examine the major childhood asthma cohort studies which have continued into adult life, describing the strengths and weaknesses and the lessons that can be learnt regarding pathophysiology and potential future directions for research.