[First clinical experience with endothelin receptor antagonist bosentan used in patients with pulmonary hypertension: results of a one-year study].

Aim: To evaluate the efficiency and safety of long-term (12-month) treatment with the endothelin receptor antagonist bosentan (tracleer (Actelion, Switzerland)) in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH).

Subjects And Methods: The prospective observational study enrolled 10 patients (8 with idiopathic PH and 2 with PH and systemic scleroderma). The patients' mean age was 50.

[Phenotypes of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease].

Aim: To study characteristics of phenotypes of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) basing on the findings of modern clinical, functional and roentgenomorphological tests in the course of the disease.

Material And Methods: Basing on the results of high performance computed tomography, 64 COPD patients aged 46-75 years (FEV1 51 +/- 24%) were divided into two groups: 53 patients with emphysematous phenotype (group 1) and 11 patients with bronchytic phenotype (group 2). The groups were compared by constitutional, clinical, functional and roentgenological parameters.

[Idiopathic and secondary pulmonary hypertension].

In the available literature, there are single papers on the association of the values of external respiratory function and the EchoCG sings of pulmonary hypertension with the morphological parameters of pulmonary arterial branches in idiopathic pulmonary hypertension (IPH) and secondary pulmonary hypertension (SPH). The present investigation comprised a comprehensive study of life-time functional changes in the cardiopulmonary system and postmortem morphometric changes in the heart and pulmonary vessels in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF)-induced SPH and IPH. The investigation has indicated that PPH and SPH are characterized by the same-type rearrangement of pulmonary arterial branches as intimal hyperplasia and medial hypertrophy; however, IPH, as compared with SPH, induces a more significant cor pulmonale.

[Morphofunctional characteristics of pulmonary and bronchial arteries in bronchial asthma, chronic obstructive lung disease, idiopathic fibrosing alveolitis].

Morphological and morphometric studies have shown that secondary pulmonary hypertension is characterized by more pronounced pathological changes in the pulmonary arterial branches in severe chronic obstructive lung disease (COLD) than in idiopathic fibrosing alveolitis. Secondary pulmonary hypertension does develop in atopic bronchial asthma. Moreover, there are more significant pathological changes in the pulmonary arteries than in the bronchial ones.

[Markers of asbestos exposure in workers].

Examination covered 213 workers of asbestos technical ware plant. Standard X-ray examination no pulmonary and pleural changes were revealed. External respiration studies demonstrated moderate ventilation disorders in half of the examinees: in hardware workshop workers--restrictive type disorders, in autofriction components workshop workers--obstructive type ones with hyperventilation.