Inhalation Devices in 7- to 15-Year-Old Children with Asthma - A Patient Preference Study.

Background: Inhalation therapy is the cornerstone of treatment of bronchial asthma. A patient-specific selection of inhalation devices is necessary, as preference for a device plays an important role in terms of error rates in handling and adherence to therapy. However, there is no industry-independent study providing information on children's preferences for common inhaler types.

Audit of sweat chloride testing reveals analytical errors.

Objectives: Sweat chloride testing (SCT) is the mainstay for the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis (CF) and biomarker in the evaluation of CFTR-modifying drugs. To be a reliable and valid tool, analytical variance (CVA) must be minimized. However, external quality assessments have revealed significant deviations in routine clinical practice.

Increased blood plasma concentrations of TGF-beta1 and TGF-beta2 after treatment with intravenous immunoglobulins in childhood autoimmune diseases.

Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta), a multifunctional, immunosuppressive cytokine, is shown to be present in substantial amounts in commercially available intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) preparations. To assess whether TGF-beta isoforms are changed in the plasma of paediatric patients with childhood autoimmune diseases after IVIG infusion, 17 patients who received over a period of 12 months overall 56 IVIG infusions (Endobulin) were enrolled in a study. High levels of TGF-beta1 (16.