Tool Helps ID Young Children at High Risk for Asthma

The CHILDhood Asthma Risk Tool (CHART) can identify children at elevated risk for asthma as early as age
3, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. Myrtha E. Reyna and colleagues developed and evaluated the use of a symptom-based screening tool to detect children at high risk for asthma at age 3, persistent wheeze symptoms at age 5, and healthcare burden. CHART applied in the CHILD Study at age 3 outperformed physician assessments and the modified Asthma Predictive Index in predicting persistent wheeze (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUROC], 0.94), asthma diagnosis (AUROC, 0.73), and healthcare use (ED visits or
hospitalization for wheeze or asthma; AUROC, 0.70). In two external validation sets, CHART had a similar
predictive performance for persistent wheeze in children at age 5 (AUROC, 0.82) and at age 7 (AUROC, 0.87).”These findings suggest that CHART may be incorporated as a routine screening tool… to trigger timely treatment initiatives and promote active disease monitoring,” the study authors wrote.