Can peak expiratory flow measurements reliably identify the presence of airway obstruction and bronchodilator response as assessed by FEV(1) in primary care patients presenting with a persistent cough?
(33/1515)
BACKGROUND: In general practice airway obstruction and the bronchodilator response are usually assessed using peak expiratory flow (PEF) measurements. A study was carried out in patients presenting with persistent cough to investigate to what extent PEF measurements are reliable when compared with tests using forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV(1)) as the measure of response. METHODS: Data (questionnaire, physical examination, spirometry, PEF) were collected from 240 patients aged 18-75 years, not previously diagnosed with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), who consulted their general practitioner with cough of at least two weeks duration. The relationship between low PEF (PEF < PEFpred - 1.64RSD) and low FEV(1) (FEV(1) < FEV(1)pred - 1.64RSD) was tested. A positive bronchodilator response after inhaling 400 microg salbutamol was defined as an increase in FEV(1) of > or = 9% predicted and was compared with an absolute increase in PEF with cut off values of 40, 60, and 80 l/min and DeltaPEF % baseline with cut off values of 10%, 15%, and 20%. RESULTS: Forty eight patients (20%) had low FEV(1), 86 (35.8%) had low PEF, and 32 (13.3%) had a positive bronchodilator response. Low PEF had a positive predictive value (PPV) for low FEV(1) of 46.5% and a negative predictive value (NPV) of 95%. DeltaPEF of > or = 10%, > or = 15%, or > or = 20% baseline had PPVs of 36%, 52%, and 67%, respectively, and DeltaPEF of > or = 40, > or = 60, and > or = 80 l/min in absolute terms had PPVs of 39%, 45%, and 57%, respectively, for DeltaFEV(1) > or = 9% predicted; NPVs were high (88-93%). CONCLUSIONS: Although PEF measurements can reliably exclude airway obstruction and bronchodilator response, they are not suitable for use in the assessment of the bronchodilator response in the diagnostic work up of primary care patients with persistent cough. The clinical value of PEF measurements in the diagnosis of reversible obstructive airway disease should therefore be re-evaluated. (+info)
Ozone-induced respiratory symptoms: exposure-response models and association with lung function.
(34/1515)
Ozone-induced respiratory symptoms are known to be functions of concentration, minute ventilation, and duration of exposure. The purposes of this study were to identify an exposure-response model for symptoms, to determine whether response was related to age, and to assess the relationships between symptom and lung function responses to ozone. Four hundred and eighty-five healthy male volunteers (ages 18-35 yrs) were exposed to one of six ozone concentrations at one of three activity levels for 2 h. Symptoms and forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) were assessed at the end of 1 and 2 h. The exposure and response data were fitted by a nonlinear exposure-response model previously found to describe FEV1 response. The proportion of individuals experiencing moderate or severe cough, shortness of breath, and pain on deep inspiration were accurately described as functions of concentration, minute ventilation, and time. Response was inversely related to age for shortness of breath (p=0.0001), pain on deep inspiration (p=0.0002), and cough (p=0.0013). Controlling for exposure differences, symptom responses were significantly but weakly (correlation coefficient 0.30-0.41) related to the FEV1 response. In conclusion, the exposure-response model did accurately predict symptoms, response was inversely related to age. (+info)
Respiratory diseases among agricultural industry workers in India: a cross-sectional epidemiological study.
(35/1515)
Epidemiological survey for respiratory diseases among agricultural industry workers, such as bakeries, poultry farms, granaries and a sugar refinery was carried out using a medical questionnaire on various respiratory symptoms such as cough, breathlessness, rhinitis. The questionnaire was filled up by two doctoral students during personal visits to these work environments. The survey revealed that 40-59% of workers in different occupational work environments suffered from one or more respiratory ailments. As much as 36-40% of the workers reported work-related symptoms which is close to similar data from Western countries. A higher incidence of respiratory disorders was recorded in workers with longer duration of employment. Older workers suffered more than the young ones. Family history of atopy was found to have least effect on the incidence of cough, breathlessness and rhinitis in the workers. Smoking was found to have definite impact on the incidence of cough and breathlessness (+info)
Effect of oral mexiletine on the cough response to capsaicin and tartaric acid.
(36/1515)
BACKGROUND: The effect of the orally active local anaesthetic mexiletine on the cough response to two different tussive agents, a C-fibre ending stimulator capsaicin and a chemostimulant tartaric acid, was examined in normal subjects. METHODS: The cough threshold, defined as the lowest concentration of capsaicin (C(5)-CP) or tartaric acid (C(5)-TA) causing five or more coughs, and histamine induced bronchoconstriction were measured three hours after a single oral dose of 300 mg mexiletine or placebo in 14 normal subjects. RESULTS: Mexiletene in a mean (SE) serum concentration of 0.99 (0. 04) microg/ml significantly increased C(5)-TA from a geometric mean (SE) of 32.0 (1.27) mg/ml with placebo to 49.9 (1.34) mg/ml, but C(5)-CP did not differ significantly between treatment with mexiletine (12.2 (1.33) microM) and placebo (14.9 (1.23) microM). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the cough response to capsaicin and tartaric acid may be mediated in part via different neural pathways. (+info)
The antitussive activity of delta-opioid receptor stimulation in guinea pigs.
(37/1515)
In this study, the activity of the delta-opioid receptor subtype-selective agonist, SB 227122, was investigated in a guinea pig model of citric acid-induced cough. Parenteral administration of selective agonists of the delta-opioid receptor (SB 227122), mu-opioid receptor (codeine and hydrocodone), and kappa-opioid receptor (BRL 52974) produced dose-related inhibition of citric acid-induced cough with ED(50) values of 7.3, 5.2, 5.1, and 5.3 mg/kg, respectively. The nonselective opioid receptor antagonist, naloxone (3 mg/kg, i.m.), attenuated the antitussive effects of codeine or SB 227122, indicating that the antitussive activity of both compounds is opioid receptor-mediated. The delta-receptor antagonist, SB 244525 (10 mg/kg, i.p.), inhibited the antitussive effect of SB 227122 (20 mg/kg, i.p.). In contrast, combined pretreatment with beta-funaltrexamine (mu-receptor antagonist; 20 mg/kg, s.c.) and norbinaltorphimine (kappa-receptor antagonist; 20 mg/kg, s.c.), at doses that inhibited the antitussive activity of mu- and kappa-receptor agonists, respectively, was without effect on the antitussive response of SB 227122 (20 mg/kg, i.p.). The sigma-receptor antagonist rimcazole (3 mg/kg, i.p.) inhibited the antitussive effect of dextromethorphan (30 mg/kg, i.p.), a sigma-receptor agonist, but not that of SB 227122. These studies provide compelling evidence that the antitussive effects of SB 227122 in this guinea pig cough model are mediated by agonist activity at the delta-opioid receptor. (+info)
Nose blowing propels nasal fluid into the paranasal sinuses.
(38/1515)
Intranasal pressures were measured in adults during nose blowing, sneezing, and coughing and were used for fluid dynamic modeling. Sinus CT scans were performed after instillation of radiopaque contrast medium into the nasopharynx followed by nose blowing, sneezing, and coughing. The mean (+/-SD) maximal intranasal pressure was 66 (+/-14) mm Hg during 35 nose blows, 4.6 (+/-3.8) mm Hg during 13 sneezes, and 6.6 (+/-3.8) mm Hg during 18 coughing bouts. A single nose blow can propel up to 1 mL of viscous fluid in the middle meatus into the maxillary sinus. Sneezing and coughing do not generate sufficient pressure to propel viscous fluid into the sinus. Contrast medium from the nasopharynx appeared in >/=1 sinuses in 4 of 4 subjects after a nose blow but not after sneezing or coughing. (+info)
Factors associated with increased respiratory symptoms among asthmatic children in Singapore.
(39/1515)
Asthma is a common cause of childhood morbidity. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the factors associated with increased asthma morbidity among asthmatic children in Singapore. A cohort of primary school children (n = 6,404, aged 6-13 years) were evaluated using the American Thoracic Society and the Division of Lung Diseases of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, USA (ATS-DLD) respiratory questionnaire. A total of 2,222 of 6,404 children (34.8%) was found to have reported symptoms of wheezing. Of these, 899/2,222 (40.5%) reported symptoms of "increased asthma morbidity". This was associated with the younger age group, male sex and higher socio-economic status. In addition, concurrent or past allergies were strongly associated with increased asthma morbidity, while premature birth and a history of prior childhood respiratory illnesses and Infections were predictive of greater asthma morbidity. No association was found between increased morbidity and presence of domestic pets, parental smoking, childcare attendance, and the season of birth. (+info)
Evaluation of inflammatory cytokine secretion by human alveolar macrophages.
(40/1515)
The alveolar macrophage (AM) secretes interleukin 1beta (IL-1beta), tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-8 (IL-8), all of them inflammatory cytokines involved in the pathogenesis of many lung diseases. The aim of the present work was to evaluate the basal and stimulated secretion of these cytokines by human AMs. Human AMs were collected by bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) from four healthy controls and 13 patients with diffuse interstitial lung disease (five cases of sarcoidosis, three of hypersensitivity pneumonitis and five of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis). AMs were cultured in the presence or absence of different concentrations of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), phorbolmyristate and gamma-interferon. IL-1beta, TNF-alpha, IL-6 and IL-8 levels were measured in BAL fluid and culture supernatant using specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. The substance found to stimulate the secretion of inflammatory cytokines to the greatest extent was LPS at a concentration of 10 microg/ml. Regarding the secretion of IL-1beta, four observations were of interest: basal secretion was very low; LPS exerted a potent stimulatory effect; considerable within-group variability was observed; and there were no significant differences in the comparisons among groups. With respect to TNF-alpha secretion, the results were similar. The only striking finding was the higher basal secretion of this cytokine with respect to that of IL-1beta. Regarding the secretion of IL-6, the same pattern followed by TNF-alpha was found. However, it should be stressed that the increase induced by LPS was smaller than in the two previous cytokines. Regarding the secretion of IL-8, three findings were patent: the strong basal secretion of this cytokine; the moderate increase induced by LPS; and the existence of significant differences among the different groups with respect to the stimulated secretion of this cytokine, which reached maximum values in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Finally, it should be noted that the pattern of cytokines observed in the BAL fluid was similar to that found in cultured AM supernatants. The pattern of inflammatory cytokine secretion by AMs differs from that of other cells of the mononuclear phagocyte system (MPS). In this sense. AMs secrete low amounts of IL-1, moderate amounts of TNF-alpha and IL-6, and high quantities of IL-8. Adherence is an important stimulus in the secretion of these molecules and LPS elicits an increased secretion inverse to the basal secretion. There is considerable individual variability in the secretion of inflammatory cytokines by the AMs of patients with interstitial lung disease and the AMs of these patients are primed in vivo for the secretion of these cytokines. The results of our study, carried out in vitro, can be extrapolated to the in vivo setting. (+info)