Articles: chronic.
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COPD screening guidelines in patients with HIV are lacking, and data about its under-diagnosis are still limited. This study aimed to determinate the feasibility of a case-finding program and the prevalence of COPD under-diagnosis in a large cohort of HIV-infected subjects. ⋯ COPD may be under-diagnosed in HIV-infected people, and case-finding programs are an urgent issue to address as part of routine practice in these individuals.
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Lower airway colonisation with species of potentially pathogenic bacteria (PPB) is associated with defective bacterial phagocytosis, in monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) and alveolar macrophages, from tobacco smoke-associated chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (S-COPD) subjects. In the developing world, COPD among nonsmokers is largely due to biomass smoke (BMS) exposure; however, little is known about PPB colonisation and its association with impaired innate immunity in these subjects. We investigated the PPB load (Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) in BMS-exposed COPD (BMS-COPD) subjects compared with S-COPD and spirometrically normal subjects. ⋯ Higher bacterial loads of S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae and P. aeruginosa were observed in BMS-COPD subjects. Increased PPB load in BMS-exposed subjects was significantly negatively associated with defective phagocytosis in MDMs and spirometric lung function indices (p<0.05). Increased PPB load in airways of BMS-COPD subjects is inversely associated with defective bacterial phagocytosis and lung function.
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To determine the effectiveness of basal membranotomy performed to ensure cerebral expansion in patients operated for chronic subdural hematoma. ⋯ The mini craniotomy-basal membranotomy technique provided statistically significantly better cerebral expansion in patients with chronic subdural hematoma when compared with the double burr hole drainage technique.
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To assess the durability of treatment over various chronic pain conditions of an emerging, nonprescription electromagnetic neuromodulation device that uses pulsed shortwave therapy. ⋯ Ninety-seven percent of the recruited subjects, all of whom had previously reported clinically significant pain relief using the 7-day PSWT device, sustained this relief for 6 months by using the device on an as-needed basis.