Pulmonary function and chest CT abnormalities 3 months after discharge from COVID-19, 2020-2021: A nation-wide multicenter prospective cohort study from the Japanese respiratory society.

Background: No comprehensive analysis of the pulmonary sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Japan based on respiratory function tests and chest computed tomography (CT) has been reported. We evaluated post-COVID-19 conditions, especially focusing on pulmonary sequelae assessed by pulmonary function tests and chest CT.

Methods: For this prospective cohort study, we enrolled 1069 patients who presented pneumonia at the time of admission in 55 hospitals from February 2020 to September 2021.

Impact of inhaled ciclesonide on asymptomatic or mild COVID-19: A randomized trial.

The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy and safety of ciclesonide in the treatment of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as gauged by pneumonia progression. This multi-center, open-label randomized trial was conducted with patients recruited from 22 hospitals across Japan. Participants were patients admitted with mild or asymptomatic COVID-19 without signs of pneumonia on chest X-rays.

[Drug-repositioning indicates a way to conquest corticosteroid-insensitivity].

Recent advance of medications and devices brings more effective treatment intervention to the patients with asthma. As far as obeying guidelines, approximately 90% of patients with asthma acquire good control. However, there are still small number of patients with asthma who resist conventional treatment.

Development of a novel score model to predict hyperinflammation in COVID-19 as a forecast of optimal steroid administration timing.

Objectives: This study aims to create and validate a useful score system predicting the hyper-inflammatory conditions of COVID-19, by comparing it with the modified H-score.

Methods: A total of 98 patients with pneumonia (without oxygen therapy) who received initial administration of casirivimab/imdevimab or remdesivir were included in the study. The enrolled patients were divided into two groups: patients who required corticosteroid due to deterioration of pneumonia, assessed by chest X-ray or CT or respiratory failure, and those who did not, and clinical parameters were compared.

Real-world treatment and health care resource use among severe asthma patients in Japan.

Background: There are limited studies on healthcare resource use (HCRU) among adult asthma patients in Japan using real-world evidence, and analysis on acute treatment and associated costs stratified by disease severity is further limited. This study aimed to characterize the disease burden of severe asthma patients in Japan in terms of HCRU and comorbid medical conditions, with particular interest in oral corticosteroid (OCS) dependency.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study of asthma patients used data from a claims database of diagnosis procedure combination hospitals in Japan.

Cigarette smoke-induced impairment of autophagy in macrophages increases galectin-8 and inflammation.

Cigarette smoke impairs autophagy, an intracellular protein degradation system, but the consequences of this defect have not been fully elucidated, especially in macrophages. Dysfunctional alveolar macrophages play an important role in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Here we show that galectin-8, a danger receptor that identifies damaged intracellular host vesicles and initiates autophagosome engulfment, is elevated due to activation of autophagy by cigarette smoke extract (CSE) in macrophages.

Pulmonary emphysema is associated with fungal sensitization in asthma.

Background: Fungal sensitization is a risk factor for severe asthma. Colonization in the lower respiratory tract is one of the forms of fungal exposure, and it is related to fungal sensitization. Pulmonary emphysema was recently reported to be an underlying disease of fungal colonization.

Persistent Asthma from Childhood to Adulthood Presents a Distinct Phenotype of Adult Asthma.

Background: In approximately 30% of children with asthma, the condition persists into adulthood. The longer duration of asthma in these patients is a risk factor for poor asthma control. However, the characteristics of adult patients with asthma that has persisted since childhood are not well documented.

Obesity-associated severe asthma in an adult Japanese population.

Background: Severe asthma is increasingly being recognized as an important public health issue. Obesity has been identified as a risk factor for poor asthma control and for worsening of asthma severity. However, most studies investigating obese patients with asthma have been performed in Western countries.

Assessing usability of the "Adherence Starts with Knowledge 20" (ASK-20) questionnaire for Japanese adults with bronchial asthma receiving inhaled corticosteroids long term.

Background: Maintaining high treatment adherence levels is critical for effective management of chronic diseases. The Adherence Starts with Knowledge 20 (ASK-20) questionnaire is the only linguistically validated patient-reported treatment adherence tool available in Japan. We conducted additional analyses on ASK-20 data from Japanese adults with asthma.