Figure 5

The relationship between past history of asthma and current symptoms of asthma. Overall, 17.6% of students ranging in age from 18 to 24 years had suffered from asthma. The percentage of students who had a past history of asthma was significantly greater in men (21.8%) than in women (14.2%) (p < 0.05) (A). Of the students who had suffered from asthma, 35% had current asthma symptoms. Further, 41 (7.0%) of 584 students ranging in age from 18 to 24 years had any asthmatic symptoms, including wheezing, a nocturnal feeling of tightness in the chest, a nocturnal attack of shortness of breath, or a nocturnal attack of cough, within the last year, although they did not have a past history of asthma (B). FE NO was ≥ 38.0 ppb in 11 of 41 students who had any asthmatic symptoms within the last year, but did not have a past history of asthma. FE NO was ≥ 38.0 ppb in 7 of 14 male students and 4 of 27 female students. The percentage of these 41 students whose FE NO was ≥ 38.0 ppb was significantly greater in men than in women (p < 0.05) (C).