Success in pulmonary rehabilitation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Background: Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is beneficial for some, but not all, patients with chronic lung disease.

Objectives: To determine the success rate of a comprehensive PR program for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and to characterize the differences between responders and nonresponders.

Methods: A chart review was performed on patients with a clinical diagnosis of COPD who were referred for PR.

The impact of CPAP on cardiovascular biomarkers in minimally symptomatic patients with obstructive sleep apnea: a pilot feasibility randomized crossover trial.

Background: Previous, largely uncontrolled studies demonstrated the substantial effects of continuous positive airway pressure ventilation (CPAP) on a variety of physiologic and biochemical markers known to be risk factors for cardiovascular disease in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). In this pilot crossover study, we assessed (1) the feasibility of using CPAP in a group of minimally symptomatic patients with OSA, assessed through patient compliance and (2) CPAP therapy's effect on biomarkers in these patients.

Methods: We studied patients with minimal daytime sleepiness who were referred to the University of British Columbia's Hospital Sleep Clinic with suspected OSA and an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) > 15 events/h.