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FROM THE EDITOR

Happy Holidays!

Al Saint Jacques

Editor, Medscape Pulmonary Medicine

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:NEWSMEMBER NEWSUSER SUPPORT

NEW FEATURES THIS WEEK

CONFERENCE COVERAGE

Highlights of the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine 16th Annual Congress

The latest critical care research on sepsis, ARDS, infectious diseases, and much more from ESICM.Medscape Pulmonary Medicine

JOURNAL SCAN

Pulmonary Medicine Journal Scan, November 2003

Review of articles on use of oxygen in exercise training in nonhypoxemic COPD patients, anabolic steroids in the rehab of COPD patients, assessing smoking in asthma and COPD, and near-fatal asthmaMedscape Pulmonary Medicine 7(2) 2003

Critical Care Journal Scan, November 2003

Review of articles on morbidity and mortality in ARDS, the cause of mortality in cardiogenic shock, patient outcomes after discharge from a hospital-based weaning unit, end of life in a pediatric ICUMedscape Critical Care 4(2) 2003

ASK THE EXPERTS

Ask the Experts on Treatment in End-Stage COPD

In an end-stage COPD patient who is dyspneic at rest, is it justified to use inhaled beta2 agonists and inhaled ipratropium at regular intervals, such as every 4 hours? If so, for how long?Medscape Pulmonary Medicine 5(2) 2003

Ask the Expers on Inhaled Steroids in Steroid-Resistant Asthma

Are inhaled steroids still indicated in cases of proven steroid-resistant asthma?Medscape Pulmonary Medicine 5(2) 2003

JOURNAL ARTICLES

Respiratory Distress

1 month old girl with history of respiratory distress.Appl Radiol Online 2(12) 2003

Commentary on Current Literature: Hormone Replacement Therapy and Sleep-Disordered Breathing

Disordered breathing during sleep is more common among postmenopausal women than among their premenopausal counterparts, possibly because of declining levels of estrogen and progesterone.Clin Cornerstone 5(3) 2003

Public Health Dispatch: Tuberculosis Outbreak in a Homeless Population - Portland, Maine, 2002 - 2003

During June 2002-July 2003, seven men with active pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) disease in Portland, Maine, were reported to the Maine Bureau of Health (MBH).MMWR 52(48) 2003

MEDLINE Abstracts: Treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnea

What's new in the medical literature concerning treatment of obstructive sleep apnea?Medscape Pulmonary Medicine 7(2) 2003

Disseminated Nocardia Asteroides Infection With Pulmonary and Cerebral Abscesses

A 42-year-old man who has undergone a pancreatic and renal transplant 6 months earlier presents to his primary caregiver with a persistent cough and onset of hallucinations.Appl Radiol 32(11) 2003

POSITRON EMISSION TOMOGRAPHY IN NSCLC

Clinical investigators explored potential utility of FDG-PET in predicting response to chemotherapy treatment for non-small cell

lung cancer. Review findings in this Medscape Journal Scan summary,

featured in the NSCLC area of the Lung Cancer Resource Center.

NEWS

AIR POLLUTION

Death Risk From Air Pollution More Due to Cardiac Than Respiratory Causes

Long-term exposure to particulate matter (PM) air pollution is more likely to result in death from cardiovascular causes than from respiratory etiologies, according to a report published in the December 16th rapid access issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.Reuters Health Information 2003

ASTHMA

Allergen Exposure Does Not Aggravate Response to Rhinovirus Infection in Asthmatics

Among patients with mild asthma, priming the airways with repeated low-dose allergen exposure prior to rhinovirus (RV) infection is not associated with an aggravated response with regard to airway obstruction and airway inflammation, according to a study published in the November 15th issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.Reuters Health Information 2003

Interferon Markedly Improves Lung Function in Steroid-Resistant Asthmatics

Treatment with interferon-alpha is associated with dramatic clinical benefits in patients with corticosteroid-resistant asthma, new research shows. Moreover, these benefits occur even in patients who have progressed to Churg-Strauss syndrome.Reuters Health Information 2003

Beta-2-Adrenergic Receptor Gene Polymorphisms Affect Asthma Phenotype

Spirometric values and bronchodilator responsiveness in patients with asthma appear to be linked to different single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the beta-2-adrenergic receptor (B2AR) gene, investigators in Boston report.Reuters Health Information 2003

Repeat BCG Vaccination Improves Lung Function in Asthmatics

A second annual Bacille Calmette-Guerin vaccination (BCG) shifts the immune system from a pathologic Th2 response into a protective Th1 response in patients with asthma, Korean investigators report. This shift results in improved lung function.Reuters Health Information 2003

COPD

Anabolic Steroids Have a Positive Effect on Body Composition in COPD Patients

Compared with placebo, a short-term course of nandrolone decanoate (ND) has a positive effect on body composition in patients with COPD, according to the results of a study published in the November issue of Chest.Reuters Health Information 2003

CYSTIC FIBROSIS

Dyax, Debiopharm Get Orphan Status for CF Drug

Dyax Corp. and Debiopharm S.A. said on Monday their experimental cystic fibrosis (CF) treatment received 'orphan drug' designation from U.S. regulators, which would confer seven years of marketing exclusivity for the drug if approved.Reuters Health Information 2003

GENERAL PULMONARY MEDICINE

Actelion Gets Australian Backing for Tracleer

Swiss biotechnology firm Actelion said on Monday its product Tracleer used to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension had been recommended for listing and government reimbursement in Australia.Reuters Health Information 2003

Some Consumer Ads for Aventis' Taxotere Misleading, U.S. FDA Charges

U.S. regulators told drugmaker Aventis to stop circulating misleading ads about a cancer drug and to take steps to correct false impressions consumers may have received, according to a letter made public on Thursday.Reuters Health Information 2003

INFLUENZA

U.S. Buys Chiron, Wyeth Flu Vaccines

The U.S. Health and Human Services Department said on Monday it had contracted to buy 375,000 doses of influenza vaccine from Chiron Corp. and had negotiated a good price for 3 million doses of a second vaccine, FluMist, for any states that want to buy it.Reuters Health Information 2003

Flu Viruses Threaten Ill-Prepared Hong Kong

A virulent strain of flu that has hit the United States is present in Hong Kong, which may not be able to cope with a major outbreak, an American expert warned on Friday.Reuters Health Information 2003

LUNG CANCER

Sputum Cytometry Could Improve CT Screening for Lung Cancer

Using sputum cytometry results to decide when to perform thoracic CT could improve screening for lung cancer, according to a recent report.Reuters Health Information 2003

PET More Accurate Than CT for Mediastinal Staging in Lung Cancer

PET imaging with 18-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) appears to be a more accurate than CT for mediastinal staging in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), US researchers report. However, the exact sensitivity and specificity of PET depends on whether enlarged nodes are visualized on CT.Reuters Health Information 2003

SARS

Singapore Quarantines 70 After Taiwan SARS Scare

Singapore ordered 70 people into quarantine on Wednesday after a Taiwan scientist who visited this month tested positive for SARS, in a case that has fanned fears of a return of the virus.Reuters Health Information 2003

SARS Evolved From Mammalian and Avian Viruses

The SARS virus looks like a combination of viruses from birds and mammals, Canadian researchers said on Monday.Reuters Health Information 2003

SLEEP APNEA

Modafinil Helpful in Sleep Apnea

In a 12-week, open-label study, this drug was effective and well tolerated as adjunct therapy.Medscape Medical News 2003

Oral CPAP Mask Appears Effective for Sleep Apnea

An oral mask appears to be an effective way of delivering continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) to patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), according to a report published in the December issue of Chest.Reuters Health Information 2003

MEMBER NEWS

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