Chest
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Correlation of cough with disease activity and treatment with cyclophosphamide in scleroderma interstitial lung disease: findings from the Scleroderma Lung Study.
Cough is a significant symptom in patients with scleroderma interstitial lung disease (SSc-ILD), affecting 73% of the 158 patients enrolled in the Scleroderma Lung Study (SLS), a multicenter randomized trial of oral cyclophosphamide (CYC) vs placebo (PLA) in patients with active interstitial lung disease. ⋯ Cough is a common symptom in SSc-ILD and correlates with the extent of fibrosis. Cough frequency decreases significantly in response to treatment with CYC but returns to baseline 1 year after withdrawal of treatment. Cough may be a symptom of ongoing fibrosis and an independent variable in assessing therapeutic response to CYC.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
The cardiopulmonary effects of vasopressin compared with norepinephrine in septic shock.
Vasopressin is known to be an effective vasopressor in the treatment of septic shock, but uncertainty remains about its effect on other hemodynamic parameters. ⋯ Vasopressin treatment in septic shock is associated with a significant reduction in heart rate but no change in cardiac output or other measures of perfusion.
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Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is an evidence-based, multidisciplinary, comprehensive intervention that can be integrated into the management of individuals with chronic lung disease. It aims to reduce symptoms, optimize function, increase participation in daily life, and reduce health-care resource utilization. ⋯ Issues related to exercise training focus on strategies to optimize the training load. We also comment on the acquisition of self-management skills, balance training, optimizing access, and maintaining gains following completion of PR.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Randomized clinical trial of endobronchial ultrasound needle biopsy with and without aspiration.
Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS)-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) is performed with a dedicated 22- or 21-gauge needle while suction is applied. Fine-needle sampling without suction (capillary sampling) has been studied for endoscopic ultrasound and for biopsies at various body sites and has resulted in similar diagnostic yield and fewer traumatic samples. However, the role of EBUS-guided transbronchial needle capillary sampling (EBUS-TBNCS) is still to be determined. ⋯ Regardless of LN size, no differences in adequacy, diagnosis, or quality were found between samples obtained using EBUS-TBNA and those obtained using EBUS-TBNCS. There is no evidence of any benefit derived from the practice of applying suction to EBUS-guided biopsies.
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Comparative Study
MicroRNA-199a-5p is associated with hypoxia-inducible factor-1α expression in lungs from patients with COPD.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs that silence target gene expression posttranscriptionally, and their impact on gene expression has been reported in various diseases. It has been reported that the expression of the hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) is reduced and that of p53 is increased in lungs from patients with COPD. However, the role of miRNAs associated with these genes in lungs from patients with COPD is unknown. ⋯ These data suggest that miR-34a and miR-199a-5p contribute to the pathogenesis of COPD, and these miRNAs may also affect the HIF-1α-dependent lung structure maintenance program.