Use of fractional exhaled nitric oxide as a potential predictor of bronchodilator response.

Nitric oxide (NO) is an important product of eosinophilic metabolism, and its increase is associated with bronchial remodeling and airway hyperresponsiveness. Fractional exhaled NO (FENO) in the expired air of patients with suspected or diagnosed asthma has been used as a marker for eosinophilic inflammation. This cohort study included asthmatic patients classified under steps 3, 4, or 5 of the global strategy for asthma management and prevention.

Small airway dysfunction on impulse oscillometry and pathological signs on lung ultrasound are frequent in post-COVID-19 patients with persistent respiratory symptoms.

Background: Thousands of people worldwide are suffering the consequences of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19), and impulse oscillometry (IOS) and lung ultrasound (LUS) might be important tools for the follow-up of this population. Our objective was to prospectively evaluate abnormalities detected using these two methods in a cohort of COVID-19 survivors with respiratory symptoms.

Methods: In this follow-up study, 59 patients underwent clinical evaluations, spirometry, IOS and LUS in the 2nd (M1) and 5th (M2) months after diagnostic confirmation of COVID-19 by real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction.

The impact of healthcare-associated infections on COVID-19 mortality: a cohort study from a Brazilian public hospital.

Objective: This study aims to analyze the risk factors for in-hospital mortality in a cohort of patients admitted to a newly adapted intensive care unit in a public hospital in Rio de Janeiro.

Methods: This was an observational, retrospective, and descriptive study. Data were obtained from electronic medical records.

Updates in Glycemic Management in the Hospital.

Purpose Of Review: To provide an update of glycemic management during metabolic stress related to surgery or critical illness.

Recent Findings: There is a clear association between severe hyperglycemia, hypoglycemia, and high glycemic variability and poor outcomes of postoperative or critically ill patients. However, the impressive beneficial effects of tight glycemic management (TGM) by intensive insulin therapy reported in one study were never reproduced.