Misdiagnosis risk in Obese Patients

An association between asthma and obesity is partly responsible for an increased incidence of physician-diagnosed asthma.
Obese patients are affected by several factors that result in asthma-like symptoms. The effect of increased body mass index on lung volumes proportionately raises the effort required for breathing.

Asthma misdiagnosis may be higher in obese patients due to the resemblance in symptoms such as breathlessness, said researchers from the Countess of Chester Hospital and the University of Liverpool in the United Kingdom. The study recruited 91 patients, of whom 33 (36.3%) experienced a probable misdiagnosis of asthma.