April 2006 Briefing - Pulmonology

Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Pulmonology for April 2006. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.

Carbon Particulate Matter May Exacerbate Allergies

FRIDAY, April 28 (HealthDay News) -- Inhalation of elemental carbon ultrafine particles (EC-UFP), a major component of urban air pollution, causes a significant increase in airway inflammation in sensitized mice when given 24 hours before an allergen challenge, according to a study in the April issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

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Codeine No Better Than Placebo for Cough in COPD Patients

THURSDAY, April 27 (HealthDay News) -- Although codeine is the standard by which new treatments are judged, the drug is no better than a placebo in treating coughs in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a study in the April issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

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CT Scan May Predict Therapy Success in Acute Lung Injury

WEDNESDAY, April 26 (HealthDay News) -- The percentage of potentially recruitable lung in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) varies and is associated with the response to positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP), according to a study in the April 27 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

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Rural Life May Protect Children from Asthma

WEDNESDAY, April 26 (HealthDay News) -- Children growing up in cities in India have almost four times the asthma rate as children in rural India, according to a report published in the April issue of the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology.

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FDA Warns of Danger of Oxygen Regulator Fires

WEDNESDAY, April 26 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received 12 reports of incidents in which oxygen regulators used with oxygen cylinders have exploded or burned, in some cases causing injury. The accidents appear to be caused by re-use of plastic crush gaskets designed for single use, resulting in an improper seal and oxygen leakage, according to the FDA and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

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Airflow Obstruction Improves with Montelukast

TUESDAY, April 25 (HealthDay News) -- Asthmatic children treated with an eight-week course of montelukast have better outcomes than those who are not given the therapy, according to a study in the April issue of the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology.

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FDA Opposes Medical Marijuana

TUESDAY, April 25 (HealthDay News) -- Noting that voters in a growing number of states have backed measures legalizing marijuana smoking under physician supervision, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has taken a stand against the medical use of smoked marijuana.

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TNF Genotype May Play a Role in Asthma Susceptibility

TUESDAY, April 25 (HealthDay News) -- A genetic variant that alters the expression of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) may protect against asthma through its role in mediating inflammatory responses to air pollutants, according to a study published in the May issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

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Diabetes and TB Often Linked Along Tex-Mex Border

MONDAY, April 24 (HealthDay News) -- Residents of Texas who are diabetics and live near the Mexican border are about twice as likely to have tuberculosis as non-diabetics, according to a report in the April issue of the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

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Blood Tests More Accurate Than Skin Test in TB Diagnosis

MONDAY, April 24 (HealthDay News) -- Two blood tests, T-SPOT.TB and QuantiFERON-TB Gold, are more accurate in detecting tuberculosis (TB) than the standard tuberculin skin test, according to an article in the April 22 issue of The Lancet.

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Corticosteroid May Harm Respiratory Distress Patients

WEDNESDAY, April 19 (HealthDay News) -- Methylprednisolone is no better than placebo at improving mortality rates in patients with persistent acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and may increase the risk of death if started more than two weeks after the onset of ARDS, according to a study published April 20 in the New England Journal of Medicine.

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Half of Health Workers Would Work During Flu Pandemic

TUESDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- Only about half of public health workers say they would likely report to work during an influenza pandemic, with clinical staff more likely to report as well as those who think they would be asked to report, according to a study in the April issue of BMC Public Health.

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Sleep Study Recommended for Young Down Syndrome Kids

TUESDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- Obstructive sleep apnea is common in young children with Down syndrome, but parents' impressions of sleep problems do not correlate with the findings of overnight polysomnography (PSG), according to a study in the April issue of the Archives of Otolaryngology--Head & Neck Surgery. The authors recommend baseline PSG be conducted on all 3- and 4-year-olds with Down syndrome.

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High Levels of Cadmium in Young Smokers

MONDAY, April 17 (HealthDay News) -- Cadmium and strontium are present at high levels in the blood of young smokers and cadmium has multiple effects on the vascular endothelium, according to a study in the April issue of Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology.

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Helium-Oxygen Mix Improves Endurance in COPD Patients

MONDAY, April 17 (HealthDay News) -- Inhaling a mixture of helium and oxygen enables patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) to walk farther with less shortness of breath, according to a study in the April 15 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

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Therapy Combination Helps NYC Firemen Quit Smoking

FRIDAY, April 14 (HealthDay News) -- An anti-smoking program that combines counseling, treatment, and nicotine medication helped 37 percent of rescue workers from the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) to quit smoking for at least a year, according to the New York City Fire Department World Trade Center Tobacco Cessation Study published in the April issue of Chest.

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Infant Snoring Linked to Parents' Snoring in Atopic Families

THURSDAY, April 13 (HealthDay News) -- About 15 percent of the infants of atopic parents are frequent snorers, and frequent snoring in infants is strongly associated with snoring in their parents, but not with environmental tobacco smoke, according to research published in the April issue of Chest.

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FDA Proposes Rule to Prevent Medical Gas Mix-Ups

THURSDAY, April 13 (HealthDay News) -- Because medical gas mix-ups have resulted in at least eight deaths and 18 serious injuries since 1996, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a proposed rule this week that is intended to make the contents of medical gas containers more readily identifiable.

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Problem Snoring in Women Linked to Age, Body Mass Index

WEDNESDAY, April 12 (HealthDay News) -- Habitual snoring in women is most prevalent among those aged 50 to 59 and in women with a higher body mass index (BMI), according to research published in the April issue of Chest.

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Excess Abdominal Fat May Forecast Lung Trouble

WEDNESDAY, April 12 (HealthDay News) -- Excess abdominal fat is a better predictor of poor lung function than body mass index, according to research published in the April issue of Chest.

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Estrogen Increases Risk of Venous Thromboembolism

TUESDAY, April 11 (HealthDay News) -- Postmenopausal women lacking a uterus are at increased risk of developing venous thromboembolism after estrogen therapy, particularly in the first two years, according to a study in the April 10 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

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Nicotine May Reduce Efficacy of Lung Cancer Chemotherapy

FRIDAY, April 7 (HealthDay News) -- Nicotine in cigarettes or patches may block the ability of some chemotherapy drugs to kill lung cancer cells, a finding that agrees with clinical studies showing that patients who smoke have worse survival rates, according to a study published online April 6 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.

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Vaccines Seem Best Strategy to Contain Pandemic Flu

THURSDAY, April 6 (HealthDay News) -- A computer simulation of the potential spread of pandemic flu in the United States suggests that initial vaccination with an avian-based vaccine followed by a vaccine based on human strains would be the best strategy, possibly coupled with school closures and mobility restrictions if a highly transmissible strain emerges, according to a study published online April 3 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.

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Prevnar Cuts Antibiotic Resistant S. pneumoniae Rates

WEDNESDAY, April 5 (HealthDay News) -- The incidence of antibiotic-resistant invasive Streptococcus pneumoniae declined significantly in the United States, both in vaccinated and in unvaccinated individuals, after the introduction of the 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (Prevnar) in 2000, according to a report in the April 6 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

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Hormone Predicts Pulmonary Hypertension in Lung Patients

MONDAY, April 3 (HealthDay News) -- Levels of the hormone brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) can predict pulmonary hypertension and mortality in patients with chronic lung disease, according to a study in the April 1 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

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Combination Treatment Benefits COPD Patients

MONDAY, April 3 (HealthDay News) -- Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have less inflammation and improved lung function after treatment with a combination of the beta2-agonist salmeterol and the corticosteroid fluticasone propionate, according to a study in the April 1 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

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