Respiratory care
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Administration of medications via aerosolization is potentially an ideal strategy to treat airway diseases. This delivery method ensures high concentrations of the medication in the targeted tissues, the airways, with generally lower systemic absorption and systemic adverse effects. ⋯ It has been hypothesized that similar success would be seen in NCFB and in difficult-to-treat hospital-acquired infections such as VAP. This review summarizes the available evidence supporting the use of aerosolized antibiotics and addresses the specific considerations that clinicians should recognize when prescribing an aerosolized antibiotic for patients with CF, NCFB, and VAP.
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The inhaled route has a number of attractive features for treatment of pulmonary hypertension, including delivery of drug directly to the target organ, thus enhancing pulmonary specificity and reducing systemic adverse effects. It can also improve ventilation/perfusion matching by dilating vessels supplying ventilated regions, thus improving gas exchange. Furthermore, it can achieve higher local drug concentrations at a lower overall dose, potentially reducing drug cost. ⋯ It is also used off-label to test acute vasoreactivity in PAH during right-heart catheterization and to treat acute right-heart failure in hospitalized patients. In addition, some studies on long-term application of INO either have been recently completed with results pending or are under consideration. In the future, because of its inherent advantages in targeting the lung, the inhaled route is likely to be tested using a variety of small molecules that show promise as PAH therapies.
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Pediatric patients are different from adult patients with respect to airway anatomy and breathing patterns. They are also incapable of following commands and often reject breathing treatments. ⋯ This review highlights research related to pediatric nebulizer and interface devices and how they can be used to provide the safest and most efficient treatments with the array of treatment delivery options. Also addressed are clinical controversies and debates in pediatric aerosol science, including drug delivery in crying versus resting infants, pressurized metered-dose inhalers and small-volume nebulizers for bronchodilator administration, continuous nebulization, noninvasive drug delivery options, and optimization of nebulizer performance during infant and large pediatric conventional and high-frequency ventilation.
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Airway mucus hypersecretion and secretion retention can result from inflammation, irritation, stimulation, or mucus-producing tumors. Secretion clearance can be furthered hampered by ciliary dysfunction and by weakness or restrictive lung disease, leading to an ineffective cough. There are a number of different mucoactive medications that have been used to reduce hypersecretion, make secretions easier to transport, or increase the efficiency of cough or mucus clearance. In this paper, I review the pathophysiology of secretory hyper-responsiveness and mucus hypersecretion and discuss the different aerosol medications that can be used to augment secretion clearance.
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Aerosol delivery equipment used to administer inhaled medications includes the nebulizer, positive expiratory pressure devices added to the nebulizer, and valved holding chambers (spacers). These devices are semi-critical medical devices, and as such, infection prevention and control (IPC) guidelines recommend that they be cleaned, disinfected, rinsed with sterile water, and air-dried. There is confusion surrounding the care of aerosol devices because of inconsistencies in the various published IPC guidelines, lack of a standard of practice among institutions and respiratory therapists (RTs), and manufacturer's instructions for use of these devices are not always compatible with guidelines or practice. ⋯ The mouthpiece/mask of disposable nebulizers should be wiped with an alcohol pad, the residual volume should be rinsed out with sterile water after use, and the nebulizer should be replaced every 24 h. The RT plays a significant and responsible role in providing and teaching aerosol therapy to patients. The RT and all stakeholders need to work together to provide a standard of care for the safe use of aerosol delivery devices.