Misdiagnosis of anomalous pulmonary venous connections in a patient with lung cancer and a review of the literature.

A partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection (PAPVC) is a rare congenital defect in which at least one pulmonary vein doesn't drain into the left atrium but into a systemic vein or even into the right atrium, causing a left-to right shunt. PAPVC with a small amount of shunt are usually asymptomatic, and can not be detected during lifetime. Nevertheless, if those patients undergo a major lung resection, the surgical procedure could precipitate right heart failure if this anomalous shunt remains uncorrected.

Inhaled corticosteroid/long-acting bronchodilator treatment mitigates STEMI clinical presentation in COPD patients.

Background: Patients with myocardial infarction and concomitant COPD are at increased risk of poor clinical outcomes, including death, as compared to patients without COPD.

Aim: To investigate and compare the severity of the clinical presentation of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and of the short-(7days) and long-term-(end of follow up) mortality in COPD patients treated with inhaled corticosteroids (ICS)/long-acting bronchodilator (LABD) - either long-acting beta2 agonist (LABA) or long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMA) - vs. any other inhaled treatments.

[Role of stem cells in the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and of pulmonary emphysema].

There are only few human translational studies performed in the area of stem cell research in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and/or pulmonary emphysema. Before progress to clinical trials with stem cells we believe that more human translational studies are necessaries, otherwise the clinical rationale would be solely based on limited in vitro and animal studies. In the future, stem cell therapy could be a treatment for this disease.