Publications by authors named "Kirthi Gunasekera"
Background: Small airways obstruction is a common feature of obstructive lung diseases. Research is scarce on small airways obstruction, its global prevalence, and risk factors. We aimed to estimate the prevalence of small airways obstruction, examine the associated risk factors, and compare the findings for two different spirometry parameters.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: There is much recent data from Nepal, Sri Lanka and Malaysia that can help us understand the practice patterns of physicians regarding the diagnosis and management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in these countries. We conducted this survey to understand the practice patterns of physicians related to the diagnosis and management of COPD in these three countries.
Methods: This questionnaire-based, observational, multicentre, cross-sectional survey was carried out with 438 randomly selected physicians consulting COPD patients.
The Global Burden of Disease program identified smoking and ambient and household air pollution as the main drivers of death and disability from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). To estimate the attributable risk of chronic airflow obstruction (CAO), a quantifiable characteristic of COPD, due to several risk factors. The Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease study is a cross-sectional study of adults, aged ≥40, in a globally distributed sample of 41 urban and rural sites.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMeasurement of an individuals ability to respond to polysaccharide antigens is a crucial test to determine adaptive immunity. Currently the response to Pneumovax is utilized but with the success of Prevnar, measurement of the response to Pneumovax may be challenging. The aim of the study was to assess the response to Typhi Vi vaccination in both children and adult control groups and patients with primary immunodeficiency (PID).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- The study analyzed stable COPD patients across seven Asian cities to understand how exposure to biomass fuels and dusty jobs affects their respiratory health and quality of life.
- Patients with a history of biomass fuel exposure and dusty jobs experienced more severe symptoms like cough and wheeze, as well as worse airflow limitation and health-related quality of life compared to those without such exposures.
- The findings indicate that environmental factors related to work and household practices significantly impact the health of COPD patients in these regions.
Background And Objective: Accurate assessment of control is an integral part of asthma management. We investigated the relationship between control status derived from the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA), the Asthma Control Test (ACT) and urgent health-care utilization.
Methods: Asthma Insights and Reality in Asia-Pacific Phase 2 (AIRIAP 2) was a cross-sectional, community-based survey of 4805 subjects with asthma from urban centres across Asia.