Journal of physiology and pharmacology : an official journal of the Polish Physiological Society
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Pulmonary hypertension is a serious disease with a poor prognosis. Pulmonary hypertension is defined by a mean pulmonary arterial pressure over 25 mm Hg at rest or over 30 mm Hg during activity. According to the recent WHO classification from 2003 pulmonary hypertension can be categorized as pulmonary arterial hypertension, pulmonary venous hypertension, hypoxic pulmonary hypertension, chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension and pulmonary hypertension from other causes. ⋯ In addition, the measurement of serum markers, such as brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), are diagnostically useful and of prognostic significance. Once the diagnosis and etiology of pulmonary hypertension have been established, several parameters can predict outcome in these patients: functional class, right ventricular function, pulmonary hemodynamics, and certain laboratory parameters. Also, exercise parameters such as walking distance, peak oxygen uptake or peak systolic blood pressure can reliable predict prognosis in these patients.
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J. Physiol. Pharmacol. · Nov 2007
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyClinical efficacy of short-term treatment with extra-fine HFA beclomethasone dipropionate in patients with post-infectious persistent cough.
Post-infectious persistent cough may be caused by an underlying inflammation in the airways. Due to its antiinflammatory properties, inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) may be a rational therapeutic approach to reduce cough symptoms. In this randomized, double-blind study, the efficacy of treatment with inhaled extra-fine HFA beclomethasone diproprionate (HFA-BDP) was compared with placebo in patients with post-infectious persistent cough. ⋯ The AUC from Day 1 to Day 11 for the frequency of cough epochs/h between 7:00 am and 11:00 pm was calculated as 605.8 for HFA-BDP and 847.9 for placebo, respectively (P<0.05). There is evidence that extra-fine HFA-BDP leads to a more rapid reduction of cough frequency at the beginning of treatment. A short-term treatment with extra-fine HFA-BDP could be an effective and well tolerated therapeutic option in the treatment of post-infectious persistent cough.
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J. Physiol. Pharmacol. · Nov 2007
Alterations of tumor and normal tissue of human lung cancer resection specimens after isolation perfusion.
The isolation perfusion model, including transbronchial ventilation of human lung, offers the possibility to study pharmacological interactions under physiological conditions. In view of the increasing importance of targeted therapy of lung diseases, this model of perfusion might attract major interest, particularly, in lung cancer. Our study investigated physiological, histological, and immunohistochemical alterations of lung and tumor tissue during isolated perfusion of lung lobectomy specimens to explore potential limitations of this model. ⋯ Perfusion of more than 4 h led to a significant edema formation in lung tissue accompanied by loss of viability and significant histological alterations. We conclude that isolated ventilation and perfusion of human lung resections within the setup chosen is reliable for pharmacological studies up to a period of 120 min. Thereafter, edema formation and endothelial damage develop and limit the interpretation and reliability of drug delivery studies.
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J. Physiol. Pharmacol. · Nov 2007
Expression of anion exchanger 3 influences respiratory rate in awake and isoflurane anesthetized mice.
The anion exchanger 3 (AE3) is involved in neuronal pH regulation of which may include chemosensitive neurons. Here we examined the effect of AE3 expression on respiratory rate (RR) in vivo. AE3 knockout (KO, n=5) and wild type (WT, n=6) mice were subjected to body plethysmography, both while awake and during isoflurane anesthesia. ⋯ Hypercapnia (5% CO2) increased RR in awake and decreased RR in nesthetized (1.0 MAC) mice, whereby relative changes were larger in AE3 KO mice. Recovery from isoflurane anesthesia in respect to RR regaining baseline values was more pronounced in AE3 KO. Results show that AE3 expression profoundly influences control of breathing in mice.
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J. Physiol. Pharmacol. · Nov 2007
Clinical TrialNormocapnia following noninvasive ventilation in acute exacerbations and chronic state of obstructive pulmonary disease.
We attempted to decrease PCO2 during noninvasive ventilation (NIV) and studied he effects of this therapy both in acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and in its chronic state. Ninety six patients (63% male) with COPD and hypercapnia above 6.7 kPa were investigated. The mode and setting of the ventilator had to be chosen to achieve normocapnia. ⋯ All three indicators together were present in 2% of patients. Normocapnia under ventilation and during spontaneous breathing was independent from the subgroup. In conclusion, the study showed that normocapnia can be achieved in COPD under the ventilator and while breathing spontaneously in chronic and acute disease.