Lung
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Review
Sarcoidosis: impact of other illnesses on the presentation and management of multi-organ disease.
Sarcoidosis remains a fascinating illness that almost always affects the respiratory tract but often involves many other organs as well. Although many patients seem to have only an intrathoracic illness, with perhaps one other site or organ involved, others can experience a severe multi-organ disease. The inciting stimulus, even if unknown, can elicit an immunologic host response-the non-caseating granuloma-in almost every organ. ⋯ But these are common problems, and it is thus necessary to separate these symptoms from those associated with abdominal visceral involvement of sarcoidosis. Although liver and/or splenic involvement with sarcoidosis do not cause organ dysfunction or insufficiency, they can contribute to abdominal symptoms. Finally, it remains of interest whether inflammatory bowel disease-Crohn's disease in particular-is another organ manifestation of sarcoidosis, or is it unrelated?
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Controlled trial of inhaled fluticasone propionate in moderate to severe COPD.
Inhaled corticosteroids are often used in the treatment of stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), however, studies of these agents have had mixed results. Previous trials have often excluded subjects with bronchodilator response, have failed to evaluate effect on gas exchange, and have usually looked at only post- rather than prebronchodilator forced expiratory volume (FEV). Our objective was to better assess the efficacy of topical corticosteroids in the treatment of COPD. ⋯ A trend towards fewer exacerbations with fluticasone did not quite meet statistical significance (p = 0.11). Inhaled fluticasone over 3 months improved prebronchodilator airflow obstruction and oxygenation while decreasing dyspnea in moderate to severe COPD. Postbronchodilator FEV1 was not significantly changed.
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Comparative Study
Objective evidence of impairment of alveolar integrity in patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus using radionuclide inhalation lung scan.
The alveolar integrity (AI) in 60 patients of noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) who had normal chest X-ray findings and pulmonary function test was measured by technetium-99m (Tc-99m) diethyltriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) and Tc-99m hexamethylpropylen amine (HMPAO) radioaerosol inhalation lung scan (lung scan). The degree of AI damage in NIDDM was presented as the clearance rate (%/min) of hydrophilic Tc-99m DTPA and lipophilic Tc-99m HMPAO radioaerosols from the lungs. ⋯ Our findings concluded that (1) at least two different clearance mechanisms of radioaerosols in the lungs are working; and (2) the AI damage in NIDDM patients happened in both hydrophilic and lipophilic parts of the alveoli. In addition, the AI damage found by faster clearance rates of both Tc-99m DTPA and HMPAO radioaerosols may provide the other objective evidence of lung complications in NIDDM patients, which are different from the traditional studies such as chest X-ray or pulmonary function test.