Respirology : official journal of the Asian Pacific Society of Respirology
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Short telomere is a crucial risk factor for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). However, little is known about the association between baseline telomere length and survival in IPF. We aimed to determine whether telomere length is associated with survival of IPF. ⋯ Short telomere length is independently associated with worse survival in IPF. Future research should focus on the molecular mechanism underlying the shortening of telomere length in IPF.
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There is relatively little data regarding pulmonary function test (PFT) findings and impact of treatment on PFT in pulmonary nontuberculous mycobacterial (pNTM) disease. ⋯ Patients with pNTM have abnormal PFT, and treatment was not associated with substantial changes therein. Asthmatics may experience some improvements in gas trapping after NTM therapy, but because the sample size and the observed change were both small, this requires further investigation.
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Expert analysis of endobronchial ultrasound mini probe (EBUS-MP) images has established subjective criteria for discriminating benign and malignant disease. Minimal data are available for objective analysis of these images. The aim of this study was to determine if greyscale texture analysis could differentiate between benign and malignant lung lesions. ⋯ Greyscale texture analysis of EBUS-MP images can help establish aetiology with a high NPV for malignancy.
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Accuracy of PaO2 /FiO2 calculated from SpO2 for severity assessment in ED patients with pneumonia.
Assessment of oxygenation in patients with community-acquired pneumonia is critical for treatment. The accuracy of percutaneous oxygen saturation (SpO2 ) determined by pulse oximetry is uncertain, and it has limited value in patients receiving supplemental oxygen. We hypothesized that calculation of partial arterial oxygen concentration/inspired oxygen faction (PaO2 /FiO2 ) from SpO2 by the Ellis or Rice equations might adequately correlate with PaO2 /FiO2 measured by arterial blood gases. ⋯ The Ellis equation was more accurate than the Rice equation for estimating PaO2 /FiO2 , especially at higher levels of P/F ratio. Estimation of PaO2 /FiO2 from SpO2 is accurate enough for initial oxygenation assessment. Ellis and Rice equations could misclassify 20% and 30% of patients, respectively, at higher levels of PaO2 /FiO2 . For patients with abnormal oxygenation falling near thresholds for clinical decision making, arterial blood gas measurement preferably on room air is more accurate.
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This was a nationwide population-based retrospective cohort study to investigate the risk of developing deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) in patients with a pneumococcal pneumonia. ⋯ Pneumococcal pneumonia should be considered a risk factor for DVT and PE, even after the patient has recovered from the acute infection.