Familial Mediterranean Fever and Asthma.

OBJECTIVE To assess the association between familial Mediterranean fever and asthma. METHODS This study was designed as a cross-sectional study. All patients diagnosed with familial Mediterranean fever between January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2016, who were prescribed colchicine were included in the study. Controls were matched by sex, date of birth, residential socioeconomic status, and country of birth. Logistic regression models were used to determine the odds ratio for asthma in familial Mediterranean fever patients and controls. RESULTS A total of 7,098 familial Mediterranean fever patients who were prescribed colchicine were identified. Of them, 3,547 (50%) were females, 3,632 (51%) were of low residential socioeconomic status and 6,160 (87%) were born in Israel. Their median age at the end of follow-up was 37 years (23-54). In an unadjusted logistic regression, familial Mediterranean fever was associated with asthma (OR = 1.33, 95%CI 1.17-1.51; p < 0.001). The association persisted after adjusting for sex, socioeconomic status, and country of birth (OR = 1.33, 95%CI 1.18-1.52; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Familial Mediterranean fever is positively associated with asthma. Further research is required to validate our results and explore possible explanations of this association. These findings cast doubt on previous studies implying familial Mediterranean fever to be a protective factor from asthma.