Physical therapy for sleep apnea: a smartphone application for home-based physical therapy for patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

Purpose: In this study, we described "PT for Sleep Apnea", a smartphone application for home-based physical therapy of patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA).

Methods: The application was created in a joint program between the University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City (UMP), Vietnam, and National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Taiwan. Exercises maneuvers were derived from the exercise program previously published by the partner group at National Cheng Kung University.

GINA Implementation Improves Asthma Symptoms Control and Lung Function: A Five-Year Real-World Follow-Up Study.

Symptoms control remains challenging for most patients with asthma. This study was conducted to evaluate the level of asthma symptoms control and lung function over 5 years of GINA (Global INitiative for Asthma) implementation. We included all patients with asthma who had been managed following GINA recommendations at the Asthma and COPD Outpatient Care Unit (ACOCU) of the University Medical Center in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam from October 2006 to October 2016.

Per cent low attenuation volume and fractal dimension of low attenuation clusters on CT predict different long-term outcomes in COPD.

Background: Fractal dimension () characterises the size distribution of low attenuation clusters on CT and assesses the spatial heterogeneity of emphysema that per cent low attenuation volume (%LAV) cannot detect. This study tested the hypothesis that %LAV and have different roles in predicting decline in FEV, exacerbation and mortality in patients with COPD.

Methods: Chest inspiratory CT scans in the baseline and longitudinal follow-up records for FEV, exacerbation and mortality prospectively collected over 10 years in the Hokkaido COPD Cohort Study were examined (n=96).

Simian virus 40 may be associated with developing malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is associated with a history of heavy, long-term exposure to asbestos. However, MPM may also be associated with simian virus 40 (SV40), a polyomavirus. The association between SV40 and MPM remains unclear.

Increased Epicardial Adipose Tissue Is Associated with the Airway Dominant Phenotype of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

Background: Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) has been shown to be a non-invasive marker that predicts the progression of cardiovascular disease (CVD). It has been reported that the EAT volume is increased in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, little is known about which phenotypes of COPD are associated with increased EAT.

A diagnostic approach and natural course of a patient with asthma-COPD overlap syndrome.

The diagnostic criteria of asthma-chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) overlap syndrome (ACOS) advocated by the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA)/Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) are somewhat complicated, and limited data are available regarding how ACOS patients respond to current medications. We present a case of a 64-year-old man with ACOS. With features favoring asthma including childhood asthma history with intermittent episodes of dyspnea at night, elevated blood eosinophil count and total IgE, increased forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV 1) after bronchodilator (>200 mL and >12% from baseline), and positive skin prick tests, he also had features favoring COPD such as heavy smoker, persistent exertional dyspnea, and airflow limitation after inhaled therapy.

Quantitative CT analysis of honeycombing area in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: Correlations with pulmonary function tests.

Objectives: The 2011 official statement of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) mentions that the extent of honeycombing and the worsening of fibrosis on high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) in IPF are associated with the increased risk of mortality. However, there are few reports about the quantitative computed tomography (CT) analysis of honeycombing area. In this study, we first proposed a computer-aided method for quantitative CT analysis of honeycombing area in patients with IPF.

Factors Affecting Time to Sputum Culture Conversion in Adults with Pulmonary Tuberculosis: A Historical Cohort Study without Censored Cases.

Background: In patients with pulmonary tuberculosis (TB), shortening the time to sputum culture conversion is desirable to reduce the likelihood of mycobacterial transmission. A persistent positive sputum culture after 2 months of treatment is reported to be associated with the presence of cavitation and the extent of disease on chest X-ray, high colony count, diabetes mellitus, and smoking. However, little is known about factors affecting the time to sputum culture conversion.

Asthma-COPD overlap syndrome (ACOS): A diagnostic challenge.

Asthma-chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) overlap syndrome (ACOS) is characterized by persistent airflow limitation with several features usually associated with asthma and several features usually associated with COPD. ACOS may be a special phenotype of a spectrum of chronic obstructive airway diseases, in which asthma and COPD are at the two opposite ends. The prevalence of ACOS varies considerably due to differing criteria being applied for diagnosis.

Behavioral Changes in General Practitioners towards Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Over Five Years: An Observational Study.

Objective: Early detection of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is critical for preventing progression; however, the disease is rarely detected in the early stages. One reason for this is that COPD is not generally recognized and diagnosed by general practitioners (GPs). The objective of this study was to observe changes in the knowledge and behavior of GPs regarding the diagnosis and treatment of COPD over a five-year period.

Relative contributions of emphysema and airway remodelling to airflow limitation in COPD: Consistent results from two cohorts.

Background And Objective: The relative contributions of emphysema and airway remodelling to airflow limitation remain unclear in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We aimed to evaluate the relative contributions of emphysema and airway wall thickness measured by quantitative computed tomography (CT) to the prediction of airflow limitation in two separate COPD cohorts.

Methods: Pulmonary function tests and whole-lung CT were performed in 250 male smokers with COPD, including 167 from University Medical Center at Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and 83 from Shiga University of Medical Science Hospital, Japan.

The combined toxic and genotoxic effects of Cd and As to plant bioindicator Trifolium repens L.

This study was undertaken to investigate combined toxic and genotoxic effects of cadmium (Cd) and arsenic (As) on white clover, a pollutant sensitive plant frequently used as environmental bioindicator. Plants were exposed to soil spiked with increasing concentrations of cadmium sulfate (20, 40 and 60 mg Kg-1) or sodium arsenite (5, 10 and 20 mg Kg-1) as well as with their combinations. Metal(loid) bioavailability was assessed after soil contamination, whereas plant growth, metal(loid) concentration in plant organs and DNA damage were measured at the end of plant exposition.

Airway wall area derived from 3-dimensional computed tomography analysis differs among lung lobes in male smokers.

Background: It is time-consuming to obtain the square root of airway wall area of the hypothetical airway with an internal perimeter of 10 mm (√Aaw at Pi10), a comparable index of airway dimensions in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), from all airways of the whole lungs using 3-dimensional computed tomography (CT) analysis. We hypothesized that √Aaw at Pi10 differs among the five lung lobes and √Aaw at Pi10 derived from one certain lung lobe has a high level of agreement with that derived from the whole lungs in smokers.

Methods: Pulmonary function tests and chest volumetric CTs were performed in 157 male smokers (102 COPD, 55 non-COPD).