According to a study published in the ‘Journal of Asthma and Allergy’, low serum Immunoglobulin A (IgA) levels were found to be more common in asthmatic patients with recurrent chest infections. This case-control study involved 80 participants with an aim to assess the prevalence of selective IgA deficiency and its correlation to recurrent infections in asthmatic patients, in comparison with asthmatic patients without infections and healthy individuals.

The key findings were as follows:

• Serum IgA was statistically, significantly lower in the patients with recurrent chest infections (group A) than in both asthmatic patients without recurrent chest infections (group B) and the healthy controls (group C).
• Serum IgA showed positive correlations with absolute eosinophilic count, duration of asthma and asthma control test results.
• Serum IgA showed negative correlations to age, serum IgE level and total leucocyte count.

In conclusion, the results of the study confirmed that low serum IgA levels are associated with recurrent infections in asthmatic patients and IgA deficiency percentage was found to be higher in asthmatic patients.