Evaluation of 3-5 months' add-on therapy with montelukast in patients with non-controlled asthma in Austria: the STAR open-label, real-world, observational study.

Objective: To assess the current state of asthma management in Austria and evaluate improvement of symptoms and quality of life (QoL) in asthma patients by adding the controller substance montelukast to existing therapy.

Research Design And Methods: Office-based pneumologists across Austria were invited to participate in an open-label, multicenter observational study. Male and female patients aged from 12-50 years with mild or moderate persistent asthma according to GINA guidelines and FEV(1) > 70% predicted were included if they were on concurrent asthma treatment, but still had persistent symptoms and reduced quality of life.

Changes in lung parenchyma after acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS): assessment with high-resolution computed tomography.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the appearance, extent, and distribution of parenchymal changes in the lung after acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) as a function of disease severity and therapeutic procedures. High-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), clinical examination, and lung function tests were performed in 15 patients, 6-10 months after ARDS. The appearance and extent of parenchymal changes were compared with the severity of ARDS, as well as with clinical and therapeutic data.

Tailoring of the lung to overcome size disparities in lung transplantation.

Background: Between October 1989 and December 1994 in 13 (four single and nine bilateral lung transplantations) of 124 lung transplantations, pulmonary allografts were considered to be too large to fit into the recipient thoracic cavity.

Methods: In all these patients (emphysema n = 6, fibrosis n = 4, pulmonary hypertension n = 3), the transplanted lungs were trimmed by extra anatomic wedge resections with the use of mechanical stapling devices to reach an acceptable size.

Results: No postoperative complication attributable to the tailoring procedure was observed.

The role of iodine-123-Tyr-3-octreotide scintigraphy in the staging of small-cell lung cancer.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of 123I-Tyr-3-octreotide scintigraphy in staging small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), its efficacy for the discrimination of limited and extensive disease stages and its regional sensitivity for different metastatic locations. Twenty patients with histologically confirmed SCLC and 50 radiologically staged tumors sites were investigated by an imaging protocol including dynamic (0-30 min p.i.

The problems of treating atypical pneumonia.

Atypical pneumonia has been recognized for at least four decades as a clinical syndrome characterized by a less severe clinical course than typical bacterial pneumonia. It is caused by a variety of different organisms including Mycoplasma pneumoniae, chlamydiae, rickettsiae, viruses and Legionella pneumophila. Of the chlamydiae, TWAR-strain (Chlamydia pneumonia) is now considered the most important pathogen.

Postoperative complication rate of thoracotomy in patients with normal and abnormal pulmonary function.

Recent advances in perioperative monitoring, anesthesia, and postoperative care have resulted in a more generous attitude towards performing thoracic surgery in patients with reduced pulmonary function. In our hospital 100 patients admitted for thoracotomy with or without pulmonary resection were classified on the basis of their pulmonary function: group I (n = 33) normal, group II (n = 40) moderate reduction, group III (n = 27) marked reduction. The mean and standard deviation in groups I, II, and III were: FEV 1 in % VC: 78 +/- 6, 72 +/- 7, and 58 +/- 10; RV in % TLC: 24 +/- 7, 35 +/- 8, and 43 +/- 9; Resistance, kPal/1/sec: 0.

Current issues in the assessment of interstitial lung disease.

Interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) are chronic disorders of the lower respiratory tract, characterized by inflammation and derangement of the alveolar walls. The major functional consequence is the loss of alveolar capillary units and, thus, a limitation of oxygen transfer from air to blood. In recent years, new insights into many aspects of alveolitis as the basic pathological substrate of these diseases, the different inflammatory and immune competent effector cells and their role in the mechanisms of injury and repair have changed our concepts about the pathogenesis of ILD.

Blood rheology after cardiac valve replacement with mechanical prostheses or bioprostheses.

Arterial thromboembolism is a serious complication in patients after heart valve replacement. Abnormalities in blood rheology may contribute to this complication. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare various determinants of blood rheology in patients with substitute heart valves with those in healthy controls; furthermore, differences between patients with mechanical valves and those with bioprostheses should be investigated.

99mTc-anti-CEA radioimmunoscintigraphy of lung adenocarcinoma.

Anti-carcinoembryonic antigen radioimmunoscintigraphy (anti-CEA RIS) in colorectal adenocarcinoma has been reported to allow a better estimation of the local tumor extension than other radiologic methods. This study evaluated the clinical feasibility of a 99mTc-labeled anti-CEA monoclonal antibody (BW 431/26, Behring Institute, FRG) in 11 patients for staging of primary adenocarcinoma of the lung. The primary tumor size ranged from 3 to 8 cm with a mean of 4 cm.

[Uni- and bilateral lung transplantation: functional results. Vienna Lung Transplant Group].

At the end of December 1990 11 patients had survived lung transplantation at the 2nd Department of Surgery, University of Vienna. In these patients 7 single lung (SLTX) and four bilateral lung transplantations (DLTX) were performed. The indication for operation in 6 cases was emphysema, in 2 cases mucoviscidosis, in 2 cases pulmonary fibrosis, and in 1 case secondary pulmonary hypertension, following operation of a ductus Botalli.

[Arteriovenous fistulas of the lung--their clinical aspects and radiologic images].

Based on the data of 15 patients the typical radiological signs of pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas, their differential diagnostic implications, clinical signs and symptoms and management are reviewed. In addition, lung function parameters of 9 patients are presented. The critical role of pulmonary angiography and sequential dynamic CT for the diagnosis is stressed, particularly in those cases in which conventional chest radiographs and tomographies fail to show characteristics abnormalities.

Implantation of the Duromedics bileaflet cardiac valve prosthesis in 400 patients.

From September, 1983, to April, 1986, 451 Duromedics bileaflet cardiac valve prostheses were implanted in 400 patients at our institution in Vienna. Aortic valve replacement was done in 190 patients, 157 underwent mitral valve replacement (1 patient also underwent tricuspid valve replacement), 52 underwent double valve replacement, and 1 patient underwent isolated reoperation for tricuspid valve replacement. Concomitant procedures were performed in 86 patients (21.

[Etiology of chronic bronchitis].

From a synopsis of the large number of epidemiological studies of the recent 20 years it is know, that inhalation of cigarette smoke is the most important factor that generates chronic bronchitis. Other noxious agents about which there are still controversial opinions, are air pollution and occupational inhalants. Although hypersecretion of mucus is the primary symptom of chronic bronchitis, it seems to have no particular prognostic meaning.

Acute effects of pirenzepin on bronchospasm.

The response to pirenzepin, a new acetylcholine receptor blocking agent, was assessed and compared to placebo in patients with reversible bronchoconstriction. A single intravenous injection of 20 mg of pirenzepin induced a significant reduction of airway resistance compared to placebo (p less than 0.05).

Effects of prednisolone on beta-adrenergic desensitization of normal peripheral lymphocytes: an in vitro model for steroid-controlled tachyphylaxis.

In vitro culture of human peripheral blood lymphocytes with the beta-adrenergic catecholamine isoproterenol for 24 hours, induced homologous beta-adrenergic desensitization, i.e. a large decrease in the number of beta-adrenergic binding sites and loss of the adenylate cyclase response to isoproterenol, without altering the effectiveness of prostaglandin E1 to stimulate the enzyme.

[Neurophysiologic studies in Pickwickian syndrome].

In 11 patients clinically diagnosed as Pickwickian syndrome the results of daytime and night polysomnogramm were compared. The daytime recording was very efficient in identifying apnoea and correlating various types of apnoea to different sleep stages. In polysomnogramms of night sleep we found, as did Lugaresi, a reduction of sleep stages III and IV, and a slight increase of sleep stages I and II.