Health status and lung function in the Swedish alpha 1-antitrypsin deficient cohort, identified by neonatal screening, at the age of 37-40 years

Eeva Piitulainen, Behrouz Mostafavi, Hanan A Tanash Department of Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, Skåne University Hospital, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden Background: Severe alpha 1-antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency (genotype PiZZ) is a well-known risk factor for COPD. A cohort of PiZZ and PiSZ individuals was identified by the Swedish national neonatal AAT screening program in 1972–1974 and followed up regularly since birth. Our aim was to study the lung function, respiratory symptoms and health status at the age of 38 years in comparison with a random sample of control subjects selected from the population registry.Methods: The study group included 120 PiZZ, 46 PiSZ and 164 control subjects (PiMM), who answered a questionnaire on smoking habits and symptoms and the Saint George Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) on quality of life. A total of 89 PiZZ, 33 PiSZ and 92 PiMM subjects underwent spirometry.Results: Four percent of the PiZZ, 2% of the PiSZ and 12% of the control subjects were current smokers (P=0.008), and 17% of the PiZZ, 9% of the PiSZ and 21% of the control subjects had stopped smoking. The PiZZ current smokers had a significantly higher (ie, poorer) median activity score according to the SGRQ than the PiZZ never-smokers (P=0.032). The PiMM current smokers had significantly higher activity score (P