Search results for "Forced Expiratory Volume"

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

2015

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…

Non-specific bronchial hyper-responsiveness in children with allergic rhinitis: relationship with the atopic status

2003

An increased prevalence of bronchial hyper-responsiveness (BHR) has been demonstrated in children from a general population, and in non-asthmatic adults with allergic rhinitis. Thus, also children with allergic rhinitis are expected to be at higher risk of BHR. We evaluated the prevalence of BHR in a sample of non-asthmatic children with allergic rhinitis by means of the methacholine (Mch) bronchial challenge, and by monitorizing the airway patency using the daily peak expiratory flow variability (PEFv). Fifty-one children (ranged 6-15 years of age) with allergic rhinitis, ascertained by skin prick test to inhalant allergens, underwent a 14-day peak expiratory flow monitoring, and a Mch bro…

Can the response to Omalizumab be influenced by treatment duration? A real-life study

2017

Objective It is unknown whether Omalizumab effectiveness changes over the course of time. Our retrospective real-life study tried to analyze whether Omalizumab response may be influenced by treatment duration. Methods 340 severe asthmatics treated with Omalizumab for different periods of time were recruited. They were subdivided into 4 groups according to the Omalizumab treatment length: 60 months. Omalizumab treatment results (FEV1, exacerbations, ACT, SABA use, asthma control levels, medications used e and ICS doses) were compared. Results ACT, exacerbations, GINA control levels, ICS doses and SABA use were similar in all groups with different Omalizumab treatment durations. Using a linea…

Palliative Treatment of Dyspnea With Epidural Methadone in Advanced Emphysema

2005

This study investigated whether epidural methadone perfusion at the thoracic level can mitigate dyspnea in patients with advanced emphysema.Open-label clinical trial without a control group.University hospital.The inclusion criteria were a diagnosis of emphysema, basal dyspnea index (Mahler scale)or = 3, FEV(1)or = 35%, and no indication for pneumoreduction or lung transplantation surgery.An epidural catheter was inserted at the thoracic level connected to a perfusion pump for administering methadone (6 mg/24 h). Assessments were made at baseline, 1 week, and 1 month after catheter insertion.Pulmonary function tests were performed, and determinations were made of arterial blood gas levels, …

Heritability of Lung Function: A Twin Study Among Never-Smoking Elderly Women

2011

Most studies on lung function heritability have been conducted in smokers and non-smokers using cross-sectional study design. Smoking patterns may, however, confound the contribution of genetic factors. We investigated heritability of forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), and FEV1/FVC ratio longitudinally, excluding the effects of smoking. A sample of never smoking female twins (n = 374), aged 63–76 at baseline, answered health questionnaires and attended spirometry in years 2000 and 2003. Bivariate structural equation modeling, restricted to adequate spirometry performances (baseline n = 339, follow-up n = 252), was used to estimate genetic and environ…

Prevalence and 30-Day Mortality in Hospitalized Patients With Covid-19 and Prior Lung Diseases.

2021

Patients with pre-existing respiratory diseases in the setting of COVID-19 may have a greater risk of severe complications and even death.A retrospective, multicenter, cohort study with 5847 COVID-19 patients admitted to hospitals. Patients were separated in two groups, with/without previous lung disease. Evaluation of factors associated with survival and secondary composite end-point such as ICU admission and respiratory support, were explored.1,271 patients (22%) had a previous lung disease, mostly COPD. All-cause mortality occurred in 376 patients with lung disease (29.5%) and in 819 patients without (17.9%) (Previous lung disease is a risk factor for mortality in patients with COVID-19.…

Biochemical, morphological, and functional aspects of systemic and local vitamin A deficiency in the respiratory tract.

1992

Near-fatal asthma phenotype in the ENFUMOSA Cohort.

2007

Summary Background Near-fatal asthma (NFA) is characterized by severe asthma attacks usually requiring intensive care unit admission. This phenotype of asthma has been studied mainly in acute conditions. Methods The aim of our study was to compare the clinical, functional and inflammatory characteristics of NFA patients with mild to severe asthmatics in stable conditions. We recruited 155 asthmatic patients from five centres of the European Network for Understanding Mechanisms of Severe Asthma: 67 patients with mild-to-moderate asthma controlled by low/medium doses of inhaled corticosteroids; 64 with severe asthma that, despite treatment with high doses of inhaled corticosteroids, long-acti…

Oral CorticoSteroid sparing with biologics in severe asthma: A remark of the Severe Asthma Network in Italy (SANI)

2020

According to the data derived from several national and international registries, including SANI (Severe Asthma Network Italy), and considering the strong impact that frequent or regular use of oral corticosteroid has on quality of life (QoL) of severe asthmatics, as well as on the costs for managing corticosteroid-related diseases, oral corticosteroid sparing up to withdrawal should be considered a primary outcome in the management of severe asthma. New biologics have clearly demonstrated that this effect is possible, with concomitant reduction in the rate of exacerbations and in symptom control. Then, there is no reason for using so frequently oral corticosteroid before having explored al…

The role of small airways in monitoring the response to asthma treatment: what is beyond FEV1?

2009

The definition of asthma has evolved from that of an episodic disease characterized by reversible airways constriction to a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways, with at least partially reversible airway constriction. Increasing evidence supports the notion that small and large airways play a central role in asthma pathophysiology with regard to inflammation, remodeling and symptoms. The contribution of the distal airways to the asthma phenotype carries implications for the delivery of inhaled medications to the appropriate areas of the lung and for the monitoring of the response to asthma treatment. Asthma control is evaluated on the basis of symptoms, lung function and exacerbation…