Use of Dipstick Assay and Rapid PCR-DNA Analysis of Nasal Secretions for Diagnosis of Bacterial Sinusitis in Children With Chronic Cough.

Background: Chronic cough in children is a diagnostic challenge.

Objective: To discover the utility of nasal dipsticks and polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-DNA analysis in differentiating bacterial sinusitis from other causes of chronic cough and identifying pathogens from the nasal cavity.

Method: We recruited 22 patients under 15 years of age with cough lasting longer than 4 weeks (group 1), 7 controls with allergic rhinitis (group 2), and 10 controls without respiratory symptoms (group 3).

Adaptation of an asthma management program to a small clinic.

Objectives: Asthma management programs, such as the Breathmobile program, have been extremely effective in reducing asthma morbidity and increasing disease control; however, their high start-up costs may preclude their implementation in smaller health systems. In this study, we extended validated asthma disease management principles from the Breathmobile program to a smaller clinic system utilizing existing resources and compared clinical outcomes.

Study Design: Cox-regression analyses were conducted to determine the cumulative probability that a new patient entering the program would achieve improved clinical control of asthma with each subsequent visit to the program.