Active clinical trials for "Lung Diseases"

Despite the implementation of modern public health interventions, 1 in 5 adults in the United States are either current or former smokers and remain at risk for the development of chronic lung diseases. It is unknown how or why any one individual smoker can develop a wide range of lung diseases including chronic obstructive lung disease and/or pulmonary fibrosis. The purpose of this protocol is to collect clinical data, blood, urine, and bronchoalveolar samples from smokers and non-smokers in an attempt to establish phenotypic clinical profiles that correspond to divergent pathways in the expression of such proteins as the transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta <=1). The information generated from this study will provide insight into the pathogenesis of smoking-related lung injury and potentially allow for the development of early therapeutic interventions.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of endothelial dysfunction in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The objectives were to collect information on vital status and pulmonary medication use at the predicted exit date for patients who participated in two one-year trials and withdrew prematurely. The primary objective was to ascertain the vital status (dead or alive) of these patients in the time interval between the patients' withdrawal from the trial and their predicted exit date (i.e: 48 weeks from first intake of randomised treatment + 30 days). The secondary objective was to collect information on classes of pulmonary medication and some other specified pulmonary interventions used by these prematurely discontinued patients at the time of their predicted exit date (i.e 48 weeks from the first intake of randomised treatment + 30 days) or at date of death (if this occurred during the time interval of interest, i.e 48 weeks from the first intake of randomised treatment + 30 days).

Many studies have evaluated the viability of measuring the pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) by non-invasive methods in patients with pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary thromboembolism, ischemic cardiopathy and valvular disease. The investigators have not found other studies which evaluate the PVR in elderly patients with COPD. The hypothesis is that in patients with COPD, the severity of obstruction, expressed by GOLD class, is associated with an increase of PVR.

To implement a new method of performing chest CT imaging in young children at Packard Children's Hospital entitled controlled ventilation infant/young child chest CT scanning. This technique will be used to evaluate early lung disease comparing quantitative chest CT air trapping and airway measurements with lung function measurements in infants, toddlers, and young children with chronic lung disease.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic inflammatory disease with high prevalence worldwide and with relevant impact on patient-related quality of life, morbidity and mortality. There is evidence that airway inflammation correlates with the severity of the disease and that airway inflammation is further enhanced during exacerbation. However, it is unknown whether daily fluctuation of symptoms or changes in lung function is paralleled by changes in airway inflammation.

The investigators have taken part in the development of simple muscle function tests and studied physical training and energy turnover in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD. The investigators have found that muscle wasting in COPD is related to poor prognosis and that physical training might lead to improved, less energy-demanding muscle function. Elderly subjects also suffer from muscle wasting that leads to frailty, poor autonomy and, secondarily, fractures. In the planned study the investigators will validate simple muscle function tests (hand grip strength, heel rise test, voluntary quadriceps muscle strength, 30 m walking test and balance tests) in both groups by relating them to an involuntary, magnet stimulated, test of quadriceps force, HRQL, tests of body composition (impedance, DXA) and recordings of physical activity. The relation between food intake, systemic inflammation, muscle mass and function will be analysed. The study has been ethically approved and started in COPD patients and will be expanded to a representative sample of elderly. Simple, evaluated muscle function tests applied in primary care may be used for early detection of muscle dysfunction in COPD patients and elderly so that early intervention against impaired muscle function can be started. Analyses of food intake and of inflammatory markers might identify factors of special importance for muscle dysfunction, which eventually might lead to improved dietary therapy and pharmacological interventions.

The specific aim of this study is to describe 1 year Advair dispensing rates for patients with COPD, and to measure the association between Advair adherence and healthcare utilization (e.g. emergency room visits and inpatient admissions, etc.). To compare the risk of a COPD exacerbation (moderate or severe) during a 3-month follow-up period between patients thqat are adherent versus those that are not.

The goal of IMPROV is to identify molecular mechanisms that contribute to lung injury and long-term breathing problems in preterm infants by investigating two interrelated biochemical pathways: the urea cycle-nitric oxide pathway and the glutathione pathway. The investigators hypothesize that prematurity-related limitations in the function of these important biochemical pathways contribute to respiratory disease risk over the first year of life.

The timing of initiating short-term treatment for COPD exacerbations with oral corticosteroids and/or antibiotic therapy has been shown to influence the recovery time of exacerbations with early initiation of exacerbation therapy having a faster symptom recovery compared to delayed initiation. While oral corticosteroids and/or antibiotic therapy are crucial for immediate exacerbation therapy, maintenance therapy with controller medications for COPD has been recommended to reduce the risk of future exacerbations. The initiation of maintenance therapy after a COPD exacerbation has been shown to be beneficial in the reduction of risk of future exacerbations. However, there is a lack of information on whether the timing of this initiation influences the risk of future exacerbations. The following study evaluates the impact of early versus delayed initiation of controller medication therapy for maintenance treatment following a COPD-related exacerbation on outcomes of future exacerbations and costs in patients with COPD.