EGEA4: the 30-year Follow-up of the EGEA Study : Study of Markers of Cardiovascular Risk in Asthmatic and Non-asthmatic
Cardiovascular (CV) diseases affect 523 million people worldwide, and are the leading cause of death, accounting for over 18 million deaths (around 30% of all deaths) every year. CV diseases account for around 45% of all deaths in Europe, or around 140,000 deaths a year in France. Asthma is one of the main non-communicable diseases, with a significant societal and individual burden, particularly in subjects suffering from severe asthma. The prevalence of asthma worldwide has risen rapidly over the past five decades, and now affects 272 million people worldwide, representing a prevalence of around 3.6%. Asthma is often associated with multimorbidity. Allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis, sleep apnea syndrome, gastro-oesophageal reflux disease, obesity and hormonal disorders are among the most common conditions associated with asthma. More recently, other chronic conditions linked to asthma have been suggested, including CV diseases. Although data from the literature in recent years suggest that asthma is associated with an increased risk of major CV events, the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. In particular, it is not known whether asthma and CV disease share common etiological processes, such as anthropometric parameters, lifestyle, social, environmental and/or genetic factors, or whether CV disease is a direct consequence of certain features of asthma, such as systemic inflammation or asthma treatments. Our study is based on the hypothesis that the risk of CV events is increased in patients with asthma, which is supported by a growing body of scientific data.However, it remains to be determined to what extent this increased risk is a consequence of asthma or is linked to shared risk factors between asthma and CV health. We hypothesize that asthma, and more specifically adult and moderate-to-severe asthma, are associated with early markers of CV risk. Furthermore, by providing a better understanding of the mechanisms involved in this association, we hypothesize that EGEA\_30years may help to disentangle and prioritize actionable levers of life-threatening cardiovascular comorbidities in asthma.
• Have participated in at least one of the previous EGEA surveys;
• to be affiliated to a social security scheme or to be a beneficiary of such a scheme.