Radiology of uncomplicated asthma.

, , 296-303. In 22 of the 117 patients with asthma, over 15 years of age, the chest radiograph showed overinflation (O pattern) and additional vascular changes in two (O pattern). Neither abnormality was seen in 60 controls. Abnormal radiographs were found in 31% of patients whose asthma started before the age of 15 but in none of those in whom it started over 30 years of age. The mean age of patients with abnormal radiographs was 24·6 years, compared with 40·1 years for those with normal films. Radiographic changes bore no relation to duration of disease. In some cases the abnormality persisted; in others it was present only during the acute episode.