Eosinophilia is a common finding in returning travellers, migrants and other travelling groups. In this setting it often indicates an underlying helminth infection. Infections associated with eosinophilia are frequently either asymptomatic or associated with non-specific symptoms but some can cause severe disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic interstitial pneumonia marked by progressive lung fibrosis and a poor prognosis. Recent studies have highlighted the potential role of infection in the pathogenesis of IPF, and a prior association of the gene with idiopathic fibrotic interstitial pneumonia (including IPF) has been reported. Owing to the important role that the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) region plays in the immune response, here we evaluated if HLA genetic variation was associated specifically with IPF risk.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic lung condition that is more prevalent in males than females. The reasons for this are not fully understood, with differing environmental exposures due to historically sex-biased occupations, or diagnostic bias, being possible explanations. To date, over 20 independent genetic variants have been identified to be associated with IPF susceptibility, but these have been discovered when combining males and females.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTransforming growth factor-β1 (TGFβ1) is the key profibrotic cytokine in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), but the primary source of this cytokine in this disease is unknown. Platelets have abundant stores of TGFβ1, although the role of these cells in IPF is ill-defined. In this study, we investigated whether platelets, and specifically platelet-derived TGFβ1, mediate IPF disease progression.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic interstitial pneumonia marked by progressive lung fibrosis and a poor prognosis. Recent studies have highlighted the potential role of infection in the pathogenesis of IPF and a prior association of the gene with idiopathic fibrotic interstitial pneumonia (including IPF) has been reported. Due to the important role that the Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) region plays in the immune response, here we evaluated if HLA genetic variation was associated specifically with IPF risk.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: The successful scale-up of a latent tuberculosis (TB) infection testing and treatment programme is essential to achieve TB elimination. However, poor adherence compromises its therapeutic effectiveness. Novel rifapentine-based regimens and treatment support based on behavioural science theory may improve treatment adherence and completion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeutrophilic inflammation correlates with mortality in fibrotic interstitial lung disease (ILD) particularly in the most severe form, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), although the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Neutrophil function is modulated by numerous factors, including integrin activation, inflammatory cytokines and hypoxia. Hypoxia has an important role in inflammation and may also contribute to pulmonary disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAm J Respir Crit Care Med
March 2020
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a complex lung disease characterized by scarring of the lung that is believed to result from an atypical response to injury of the epithelium. Genome-wide association studies have reported signals of association implicating multiple pathways including host defense, telomere maintenance, signaling, and cell-cell adhesion. To improve our understanding of factors that increase IPF susceptibility by identifying previously unreported genetic associations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: Cardiac death is the leading cause of mortality in patients with sarcoidosis, yet cardiac involvement often remains undetected. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET) have been used to diagnose cardiac sarcoidosis (CS) yet never simultaneously in a cohort. This study sought to assess the diagnostic and prognostic utility of simultaneous hybrid cardiac PET/MR.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic progressive lung disease with high mortality, uncertain cause, and few treatment options. Studies have identified a significant genetic risk associated with the development of IPF; however, mechanisms by which genetic risk factors promote IPF remain unclear. We aimed to identify genetic variants associated with IPF susceptibility and provide mechanistic insight using gene and protein expression analyses.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRationale: Stem cell-based tracheal replacement represents an emerging therapeutic option for patients with otherwise untreatable airway diseases including long-segment congenital tracheal stenosis and upper airway tumors. Clinical experience demonstrates that restoration of mucociliary clearance in the lungs after transplantation of tissue-engineered grafts is critical, with preclinical studies showing that seeding scaffolds with autologous mucosa improves regeneration. High epithelial cell-seeding densities are required in regenerative medicine, and existing techniques are inadequate to achieve coverage of clinically suitable grafts.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSarcoidosis is a multisystem granulomatous disease of unknown aetiology characterized by increased inflammation, and results from gene-environment interactions. Proteinase-activated receptor-1 mediates the interplay between coagulation and inflammation. The rs2227744G > A promoter single nucleotide polymorphism has been linked to inflammation, cardiovascular disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Objective: Standard bronchoscopic techniques (transbronchial lung biopsy and endobronchial biopsy) provide a diagnosis in 70% of patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis. Previous data suggest that endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) has a high sensitivity in patients with sarcoidosis. The feasibility and utility of combining EBUS-TBNA with standard bronchoscopic techniques is unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEosinophilia is a common finding in returning travellers and migrants, and in this group it often indicates an underlying helminth infection. Infections are frequently either asymptomatic or associated with non-specific symptoms, but some can cause severe disease. Here the British Infection Society guidelines group reviews common and serious infectious causes of eosinophilia, and outlines a scheme for investigating returning travellers and migrants.
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