Association between Social Phobia and Allergic Asthma in Adolescents

Shuang Han¹Tao Wang²Jiaojiao Wang¹Zhihua Han²Pengfei Wang^1*

• ¹Qingdao Central Hospital of University of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Qingdao, China
• ²Qingdao Hongdao People's Hospital, Qingdao, China

Abstract Background Social phobia and asthma pose threats to the health of adolescents at the psychological and physical levels respectively. The aim of this study was to explore the association between social phobia and asthma in this population. Methods A total of 337 adolescent asthma patients and 337 adolescent controls were included. The social phobia status was assessed using the Mini Social Phobia Inventory (Mini-SPIN) and Social Anxiety Scale for Children (SASC). The ratio of forced expiratory volume in one second to forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC), the percentage of forced expiratory volume in one second to its predicted value (FEV1%pred), peak expiratory flow (PEF), peripheral levels of plasma eosinophil, IgE, leukotriene, and histamine were also measured. Multivariate logistic or linear regression analyses were used to evaluate the associations between social phobia-related variables and asthma-related variables . Results Elevated scores on the Mini-SPIN and SASC scales were associated with an increased risk of asthma in adolescents (both P<0.001). This association remained consistent across adolescents with new-onset asthma (both P <0.001) and those with asthma recurrence in adolescence following a childhood asthma history (both P <0.001). Meanwhile, higher scores on the two scales correlated with decreased FEV1/FVC (both P <0.001) and FEV1%pred (P=0.001 and P=0.002, respectively) as well as elevated leukotriene levels (P<0.001 and P=0.001, respectively). However, neither scale showed an association with plasma eosinophil, IgE, or histamine levels. Conclusion Among adolescents, there was a significant association between social phobia and asthma.