Cardiopulmonary Complications after Pulmonary Embolism in COVID-19.

Although pulmonary embolism (PE) is a frequent complication in COVID-19, its consequences remain unknown. We performed pulmonary function tests, echocardiography and computed tomography pulmonary angiography and identified blood biomarkers in a cohort of consecutive hospitalized COVID-19 patients with pneumonia to describe and compare medium-term outcomes according to the presence of PE, as well as to explore their potential predictors. A total of 141 patients (56 with PE) were followed up during a median of 6 months.

Body Dissatisfaction among Young Girls in Recreational Rhythmic Gymnastics.

Body dissatisfaction is commonly associated with rhythmic gymnastics (RG) practice, but limited research exists on the prevalence of this issue among recreational level practitioners. This study examines body image dissatisfaction among young girls practicing RG recreationally. A total of 88 girls between six and eleven years of age, who participate in RG as an extracurricular activity, were measured and completed the Stunkard pictogram.

Cardiorenal Impact of Anti-Cancer Agents: The Intersection of Onco-Nephrology and Cardio-Oncology.

Background: The evolving landscape of cancer treatments has introduced new challenges, particularly related to adverse events associated with chemotherapeutic agents. To address these challenges, the fields of cardio-oncology and onco-nephrology have arisen, focusing on the management of cardiotoxicity and nephrotoxicity attributable to anti-cancer drugs.

Summary: Numerous intersections between these disciplines exist, including onco-hypertension (HTN) and cardiorenal toxicities induced by chemotherapeutic agents.

Pulmonary thrombosis associated with COVID-19 pneumonia: Beyond classical pulmonary thromboembolism.

Background: Classical pulmonary thromboembolism (TE) and local pulmonary thrombosis (PT) have been suggested as mechanisms of thrombosis in COVID-19. However, robust evidence is still lacking because this was mainly based on retrospective studies, in which patients were included when TE was suspected.

Methods: All patients with COVID-19 pneumonia underwent computed tomography and pulmonary angiography in a prospective study.

Prevalence and clinical characteristics of patients with rheumatoid arthritis with interstitial lung disease using unstructured healthcare data and machine learning.

Objectives: Real-world data regarding rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and its association with interstitial lung disease (ILD) is still scarce. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of RA and ILD in patients with RA (RAILD) in Spain, and to compare clinical characteristics of patients with RA with and without ILD using natural language processing (NLP) on electronic health records (EHR).

Methods: Observational case-control, retrospective and multicentre study based on the secondary use of unstructured clinical data from patients with adult RA and RAILD from nine hospitals between 2014 and 2019.

A Prospective Study Evaluating Cumulative Incidence and a Specific Prediction Rule in Pulmonary Embolism in COVID-19.

Rationale: Abnormal values of hypercoagulability biomarkers, such as D-dimer, have been described in Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), which has also been associated with disease severity and in-hospital mortality. COVID-19 patients with pneumonia are at greater risk of pulmonary embolism (PE). However, the real incidence of PE is not yet clear, since studies have been limited in size, mostly retrospective, and PE diagnostic procedures were only performed when PE was clinically suspected.

Different Faces of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis With Preserved Forced Vital Capacity.

Introduction: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is progressive and irreversible. Some discrepancies about IPF staging exists, especially in mild phases. Forced vital capacity (FVC) higher than 80% has been considered early or mild IPF even for the design of clinical trials.

Prevalence of pulmonary embolism in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia and high D-dimer values: A prospective study.

Introduction: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia is associated to systemic hyper-inflammation and abnormal coagulation profile. D-dimer elevation is particularly frequent, and values higher than 1μg/mL have been associated with disease severity and in-hospital mortality. Previous retrospective studies found a high pulmonary embolism (PE) prevalence, however, it should be highlighted that diagnoses were only completed when PE was clinically suspected.

Higher MICs (>2 mg/L) Predict 30-Day Mortality in Patients With Lower Respiratory Tract Infections Caused by Multidrug- and Extensively Drug-Resistant Treated With Ceftolozane/Tazobactam.

Background: Ceftolozane/tazobactam (C/T) efficacy and safety in ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is being evaluated at a double dose by several trials. This dosing is based on a pharmacokinetic (PK) model that demonstrated that 3 g q8h achieved ≥90% probability of target attainment (50% ƒT > minimal inhibitory concentration [MIC]) in plasma and epithelial lining fluid against C/T-susceptible . The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of different C/T doses in patients with lower respiratory infection (LRI) due to MDR- or XDR- considering the C/T MIC.

Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: Epidemiology, Natural History, Phenotypes.

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is the most common of the idiopathic interstitial pneumonias. It is characterized by a chronic, progressive, fibrotic interstitial lung disease of unknown cause that occurs primarily in older adults. Its prevalence and incidence have appeared to be increasing over the last decades.

Ceftolozane/tazobactam for the treatment of multidrug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa: experience from the Balearic Islands.

A prospective, descriptive observational study of consecutive patients treated with ceftolozane/tazobactam in the reference hospital of the Balearic Islands (Spain), between May 2016 and September 2017, was performed. Demographic, clinical, and microbiological variables were recorded. The later included resistance profile, molecular typing, and whole genome sequencing of isolates showing resistance development.

Noninvasive ventilation during the weaning process in chronically critically ill patients.

Chronically critically ill patients often undergo prolonged mechanical ventilation. The role of noninvasive ventilation (NIV) during weaning of these patients remains unclear. The aim of this study was to determine the value of NIV and whether a parameter can predict the need for NIV in chronically critically ill patients during the weaning process.

Noninvasive ventilation for severely acidotic patients in respiratory intermediate care units : Precision medicine in intermediate care units.

Background: Severe acidosis can cause noninvasive ventilation (NIV) failure in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients with acute hypercapnic respiratory failure (AHRF). NIV is therefore contraindicated outside of intensive care units (ICUs) in these patients. Less is known about NIV failure in patients with acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema (ACPE) and obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS).

Lack of Correlation Between Pulmonary and Systemic Inflammation Markers in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Simultaneous, Two-Compartmental Analysis.

Introduction: The origin of systemic inflammation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients remains to be defined, but one of the most widely accepted hypothesis is the 'spill over' of inflammatory mediators from the lung to the circulation.

Objective: To evaluate the relationship between pulmonary and systemic inflammation in COPD quantifying several inflammatory markers in sputum and serum determined simultaneously.

Methodology: Correlations between various inflammatory variables (TNF-α, IL6, IL8) in sputum and serum were evaluated in 133 patients from the PAC-COPD cohort study.

Differential effects of smoking and COPD upon circulating myeloid derived suppressor cells.

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by an enhanced and persistent innate and acquired immune response to tobacco smoking. Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) modulate T-cell responses by down-modulating the T cell receptor ζ chain (TCR ζ) through the catabolism of l-arginine. The effects of smoking on MDSCs and their potential participation in COPD immunopathogenesis have not been explored so far.

HLA distribution in COPD patients.

Background: Auto-immunity may contribute to the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), particularly to the presence of emphysema. Auto-immune diseases are characterized by an abnormal distribution of HLA class II alleles (DR and DQ). The distribution of DRB1 and DQB1 alleles has not been investigated in COPD.

Characteristics of asthma patients admitted to an intermediate respiratory care unit.

Introduction: Intermediate respiratory care units (IRCU) provide continuous monitoring and non-invasive mechanical ventilation (NIMV) in patients with severe respiratory failure who are usually admitted to intensive care units (ICU). The usefulness of IRCU in managing severe asthma exacerbations has never been evaluated.

Methods: Clinical data were prospectively and systematically compiled from patients admitted to the IRCU with a principal diagnosis of bronchial asthma exacerbation.

Anti-tissue antibodies are related to lung function in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Rationale: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a multicomponent disease. Autoimmunity can contribute to the pathogenesis of COPD.

Objectives: This study investigates the prevalence of circulating antinuclear antibodies (ANA) and anti-tissue (AT) antibodies, two common markers of autoimmunity, in COPD and their relationship with several components of the disease.

Low erythropoietin plasma levels during exacerbations of COPD.

Background: It is known that pro-inflammatory cytokines suppress in vitro the gene expression and protein production of erythropoietin (Epo). We hypothesized that systemic inflammation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) may influence Epo production, particularly during episodes of exacerbation of the disease (ECOPD) where an inflammatory burst is known to occur.

Objectives: We compared the plasma levels of Epo and high-sensitivity (hs) C-reactive protein (hsC-RP) in patients hospitalized because of ECOPD (n = 26; FEV(1): 48 +/- 15% predicted), patients with clinically stable COPD (n = 31; FEV(1): 49 +/- 17% predicted), smokers with normal lung function (n = 9), and healthy never smokers (n = 9).

Non-cytotoxic variants of the Kid protein that retain their auto-regulatory activity.

Kid and Kis are, respectively, the toxin and antitoxin encoded by the parD operon of plasmid R1. The recently solved crystal structure of Kid has revealed that this protein closely resembles the CcdB toxin of plasmid F. In CcdB, the residues involved in toxicity are located at the carboxy-terminal end of the protein.