Is mild asthma in real life always in the Green Zone?

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways that is characterized by variable narrowing of the airways and symptoms of intermittent dyspnea, wheezing, and nighttime or early-morning coughing. Asthma is a major health problem throughout the world, affecting an estimated 315 million persons of all ages. Asthma is clinically heterogeneous, and its pathophysiology is complex. For convenience, asthma action plans are often broken down into three zones, usually based on peak flow meter recordings: green, yellow, and red according to the level of lung function impairment. Recent evidence shows that every asthmatic is potentially at risk for severe exacerbation independently of his/her …

Chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps impact in severe asthma patients: Evidences from the Severe Asthma Network Italy (SANI) registry

Abstract Background The clinical and laboratory features of patients enrolled in the Severe Asthma Network in Italy (SANI) registry, a web-based observatory collecting demographic, clinical, functional and inflammatory data of patients with severe asthma were evaluated, with a special emphasis to chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP). Methods For each eligible patients the following information has been collected: demographic data, clinical features, asthma control in the previous month according to the GINA (Global INitiative for Asthma) Guidelines and standardized questionnaires, concomitant regular and on demand treatments and inflammatory markers. Results 695 patients wit…

Reply to: Kow CS et al. Are severe asthma patients at higher risk of developing severe outcomes from COVID-19?

Spirometric criteria to diagnose airway obstruction in the elderly: fixed ratio vs. lower limit of normal.

COPD is the most common chronic lung disease. It becomes more prevalent with increasing age but remains under-diagnosed in the elderly. A heated debate concerns the most suitable way to diagnose airway obstruction in this age group. Most COPD guidelines recommend to use a FEV1/FVC of 0.70 as threshold to define an obstructive ventilatory defect. While the use of a 0.70 ratio may be simple, it may result in under-diagnosis of airflow obstruction in young people and over-diagnosis in the elderly due to an age-related decline in pulmonary volumes, especially in FEV1. This might lead to unnecessary use of medications and increased risk of adverse effects. A proposed strategy for reducing the mi…

Treatment adherence and QoL with intermittent PTH therapy: Results from a multicentre Italian study after 6 months

This ongoing multicentre study was carried out to investigate the adherence to intermittent parathyroid hormone treatment and the effect on QoL in a typical Italian population eligible for drug reimbursement (i.e. a new vertebral or hip fracture following at least one year of anti-resorptive therapy or three severe vertebral fractures or two severe and one femur fracture). 204 female patients (mean age: 72.6±8.3) were enrolled between March 2008 and April 2009. These patients were treated with PTH (PTH 1–34 or PTH 1–84) according to Italian legislation. Here, we report the results obtained at month 6.

Assessment of the Control of Allergic Rhinitis and Asthma Test (CARAT) using MASK-air

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