Respiratory medicine
-
Respiratory medicine · Feb 2013
Multicenter StudyImpact of comorbidities on COPD-specific health-related quality of life.
Comorbidities are frequent in subjects with COPD, but their contribution to health-related quality of life (HRQoL) impairment is not clearly established. ⋯ These data suggest that in the presence of dyspnea and exacerbation, depression is the most important contributor to HRQoL impairment measured by SGRQ in COPD subjects, whereas other comorbidities and FEV(1) have only limited impact.
-
Respiratory medicine · Feb 2013
Randomized Controlled TrialRelationship between daily physical activity and exercise capacity in patients with COPD.
Exercise training programmes for patients with COPD are effective in improving exercise capacity. The few trials that have investigated the effects of exercise programmes on daily physical activity show contradictory results. ⋯ A moderate to weak relationship was found between daily physical activity and exercise capacity. These results strengthen our beliefs that exercise interventions need to target not only exercise capacity but also behaviour change with regard to daily physical activity to achieve improvements in both parameters.
-
Respiratory medicine · Feb 2013
Multicenter StudyDaytime PaO2 in OSAS, COPD and the combination of the two (overlap syndrome).
OSAS and COPD are often associated with day-time hypoxemia. Overlap Syndrome (OS), the association between both diseases, increases the risk of day-time hypoxemia. The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanisms which could justify the low oxygen level and the effect of CPAP. ⋯ Our data suggest that day-time hypoxemia in OSA patients is largely determined by the increase of body weight and severity of nocturnal hypoxia. However, CPAP therapy has been shown to improve daytime PaO(2) values both in OSAS and in OS.
-
Respiratory medicine · Feb 2013
Hypoxaemia in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension during simulated air travel.
Recent air travel recommendations suggest patients with precapillary pulmonary hypertension (PCPH) in New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class 3 and 4 should have in-flight oxygen without the need for pre-flight testing. However it remains unclear as to how best to determine patients fitness to fly. ⋯ Hypoxaemia induced by simulated air travel in patients with PCPH is similar to that seen in published studies of patients with other chronic respiratory diseases. HCT failed to predict correctly who had developed symptoms during an aircraft flight in a significant minority of the study subjects. Similarly guidelines based on functional class result in a major increase in the proportion of patients being advised to use oxygen, many of whom had been asymptomatic on previous flights without it. More work is required to improve prediction of need for in-flight oxygen in patients with PCPH.
-
Respiratory medicine · Feb 2013
FENO measurement and sputum analysis for diagnosing asthma in clinical practice.
To determine the diagnostic accuracy of fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) measurement in pneumologists routine diagnostic work-up; and to determine the impact of the inflammatory pattern on diagnostic accuracy. ⋯ FENO measurement can be useful as an additional diagnostic tool in pneumologists' practice. The diagnostic value of FENO could be improved when inflammatory patterns are taken into account.