American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Sep 2018
Short-Term Elevation of Fine Particulate Matter Air Pollution and Acute Lower Respiratory Infection.
Nearly 60% of U.S. children live in counties with particulate matter less than or equal to 2.5 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM2.5) concentrations above air quality standards. Understanding the relationship between ambient air pollution exposure and health outcomes informs actions to reduce exposure and disease risk. ⋯ In this large sample of urban/suburban patients, short-term exposure to elevated PM2.5 air pollution was associated with greater healthcare use for ALRI in young children, older children, and adults. Further exploration is needed of causal interactions between PM2.5 and ALRI.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Sep 2018
Multicenter StudyGrief Symptoms in Relatives Who Experienced Organ Donation Requests in the ICU.
Studies show that the quality of end-of-life communication and care have a significant impact on the living long after the death of a relative and have been implicated in the burden of psychological symptoms after the ICU experience. In the case of organ donation, the patient's relatives are centrally involved in the decision-making process; yet, few studies have examined the impact of the quality of communication on the burden of psychological symptoms after death. ⋯ Experience of the organ donation process varied between relatives of donor versus nondonor patients, with relatives of nondonors experiencing lower-quality communication, but the decision was not associated with subsequent grief symptoms. Importantly, understanding of brain death is a key element of the organ donation process for relatives.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Sep 2018
Endothelial and Smooth Muscle Cell Interaction via FoxM1 Signaling Mediates Vascular Remodeling and Pulmonary Hypertension.
Angioproliferative vasculopathy is a hallmark of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). However, little is known about how endothelial cell (EC) and smooth muscle cell (SMC) crosstalk regulates the angioproliferative vascular remodeling. ⋯ Multiple factors derived from dysfunctional ECs induced FoxM1 expression in SMCs and activated FoxM1-dependent SMC proliferation, which contributes to pulmonary vascular remodeling and PH. Thus, targeting FoxM1 signaling represents a novel strategy for treatment of idiopathic PAH.