Active clinical trials for "Lung Diseases"

In the weeks following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, many patients presented to their physicians with complaints related to exposure to the debris. These included nose and throat complaints (drip, congestion, sore throat), increased GE reflux (heartburn, regurgitation, retrosternal chest burning) and respiratory symptoms (worsening cough, wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, sleep disturbance). In addition, there was a disproportionate rate of self-reported worsening asthma symptoms in patients living in Lower New York 5-9 weeks after the attack; those with exposure to the dust cloud fared worse. The functional abnormalities of firefighters with exposures to dust at the WTC site has been recently described. However, the effects of WTC dust exposure on pulmonary function in residents and workers near the WTC site remain unclear. This study will retrospectively review the charts of all patients referred to the pulmonary function laboratory for evaluation of symptoms following exposure to WTC dust. The main objectives for this study will be to characterize the functional abnormalities in these subjects.

Measurements of Structured Light Plethysmography (SLP) using a chest wall movement based method will be compared to those obtained by spirometry using a flow based pneumotachograph method. This study will enable validation of SLP in children and adults by allowing direct comparison of simultaneous measurements of breathing sequences using the two measurement techniques. The investigators will also examine, in a group of normal adults, repeatability of the agreement between the two devices, and whether the agreement is affected by a change in tidal breathing parameters.

The objective of the study is to observe the effect of adherence to once-daily administered long-acting bronchodilators (long-acting ß2-agonists [LABAs] / long-acting muscarinic antagonists [LAMAs]) on patients health related quality of life (HR-QoL) and to assess the relation between symptoms improvement and adherence to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) maintenance therapy

The aim of the present study is to validate a new method in healthy volunteers and those diagnosed with COPD and CHF that is able to measure protein digestion and absorption simultaneously. This method is used to quantify digestion and absorption in patients who are suspect of impaired digestion and absorption resulting in loss of nutrients.Findings may be used to develop treatment strategies to improve protein digestion and absorption in these patient groups.

Non-invasive inert gas rebreathing (IGR) based on the Fick Principle showed promising results in the determination of pulmonary blood flow (PBF). The volume of the rebreathing bag (Vbag) is proposed by the system, however, elderly patients or those suffering from high grade pulmonary diseases might be unable to entirely rebreathe this volume and therefore fail to completely mix the test gases. The aim of our study is to evaluate the effect of adapting Vbag on the reproducibility of IGR measurements in patients with obstruction (group A), restriction (group B) and pulmonary healthy controls (group C).

Background: Recent observational studies have reported possible arrhythmogenic effects with long-acting beta-agonists (LABA), while the long-acting anticholinergic tiotropium has been associated with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events. Finally, pneumonia was the object of a recent signal in trials of LABAs submitted for marketing approval. Aim: To assess the potential cardio-pulmonary risk arising from the concurrent use of two long-acting bronchodilators as well as from monotherapy use of each of the long-acting bronchodilators. Methods: A series of population-based cohort studies, using both cohort and nested case-control analyses will be conducted using data from the United Kingdom's Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD). The base cohort will consist of new users of long-acting bronchodilators from Jan 2002 until Aug 2012, age >= 55 with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and at least two years of baseline medical history information. The high-dimensional propensity score technique will be used to match new users of each long-acting bronchodilator and new users of two bronchodilators with comparable subjects from the base cohort, with one-year follow-up for outcomes of acute myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure, arrhythmia and community acquired pneumonia. Data will be analysed using time-dependent Cox proportional hazard regression models and conditional logistic regression models.

To develop a computer program that will improve CT image quality and decrease the amount of x-ray radiation that future patients may be exposed to when they have a CT examination.

The feasibility study will involve mixed methods, this means interviews as well as assessment of treatment with inspiratory muscle training therapy (IMT). There are two pathways within the study depending on whether people want to have inspiratory muscle training. People who accept to have inspiratory muscle training will have assessments before training, after 8 weeks of training and at 6 month follow up in addition to interviews before and after the study (at 6 months). For those who choose not to have the inspiratory muscle training the investigators will offer them an interview so that the investigators can find out more about what might have made the study more appealing or what treatments they would have preferred. The investigators will also ask if they wish to be followed up with baseline assessments for the study period and if the investigators can access health records. Interviews Semi-structured interviews lasting approximately an hour will be performed at the beginning of the study with participants who accept the IMT pathway and those who decline IMT until no knew themes are raised. These interviews will be used to provide information on reasons for declining pulmonary rehabilitation, attitudes to exercise, attitudes to IMT, treatment preferences and opinions regarding study design and outcome measures (see Interview Topic guide). The interviews will be taped and transcribed verbatim. A follow up interview with study participants who have received IMT will be conducted at 6 months addressing attitudes to IMT and study design and whether they have decided that they wish to engage with other services (such as pulmonary rehabilitation and smoking cessation). Inspiratory Muscle Training (IMT) method Participants will perform 8 weeks of IMT strength training using the Powerbreathe Kinetic device (Powerbreathe). Training will progress to 60% maximum inspiratory pressure (PiMax). This means that each breath in through the device is set at 60% of the maximum force you are able to create when you breathe in rather than at full force. 30 breaths are performed at high velocity (paced initially over a period of 15 minutes to allow recovery between each breath through the device). Once established it is anticipated that each training session should take no more than five minutes. Training is performed twice a day, 5 days per week for the first 8 weeks. Training will be titrated (set to a level suitable for the participant) and supervised weekly for the first 8 weeks by a physiotherapist. After 8 weeks training the participants are advised to continue training unsupervised, twice a day, 3 times per week for a further 18 weeks.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of telemedicine video-consultation (TVC) on the frequency of hospital re-admissions during 12 months follow-up after TVC among patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Our secondary aims were to assess the impact of TVC on the length of recurrent hospital stays and time to re-admission within 12 months follow-up after TVC. We also wanted to evaluate the patient satisfaction related to TVC.

An adverse event (AE) is defined as unintended injury or complication, which results in disability, death or prolongation of hospital stay, and is caused by healthcare management (including omissions) rather than the patient's disease. Retrospective record reviews in several countries have shown that 2,9% to 16,6% of patients in acute hospitals experience one or more AEs. A patient with an AE may require a higher level of care. Although all AEs are important, preventable AEs that result in an upgraded level of patient care are of particular concern. In this study it's defined as an unplanned admission to intensive care unit (ICU) or a Mobile Emergency Team (MET) intervention. The objectives of this study are to determine the incidence of (preventable) adverse events requiring ICU admission or MET intervention and to assess the level of harm of each AE.