International journal of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
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Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis · Jan 2011
Outcome of pulmonary rehabilitation in COPD patients with severely impaired health status.
Effects of pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients with severely impaired health status are poorly documented since these patients are usually excluded from clinical trials. This retrospective, observational study aims to study the impact of disease on health status and the effects of PR on COPD patients referred to a tertiary center for PR in The Netherlands. ⋯ The present study provides data to indicate that COPD patients may substantially benefit from rehabilitation in a tertiary pulmonary rehabilitation center, despite a severely impaired health status and high level of health-care utilization, in which prior treatment in primary and secondary care have failed to improve health status. Individual rehabilitation responses can only partially be predicted on the basis of baseline characteristics. Consequently, no firm conclusions can be drawn from this study with respect to the selection of candidates that could be deemed eligible for this rehabilitation program when entering the program.
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Visual and auditory analysis of respiratory sound signals promises improved detection of certain types of lung diseases. LabVIEW software was used to design a system that monitors the respiratory activity of the patient. The program developed calculates the respiratory rate, displays the time expanded waveform of the lung sound, and computes the fast Fourier transform and short-time Fourier transform to present the power spectrum and spectrogram respectively. These parameters are transmitted synchronously to the remote station using the Internet for online monitoring of the patient.
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Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis · Jan 2011
Disability related to COPD tool (DIRECT): towards an assessment of COPD-related disability in routine practice.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a worldwide public health concern. It is also a major source of disability that is often overlooked, depriving patients of effective treatments. This study describes the development and validation of a questionnaire specifically assessing COPD-related disability. ⋯ DIRECT is a promising tool that could help enhance the management of COPD patients by integrating an evaluation of the COPD-related disability into daily practice.
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Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis · Jan 2011
Meta AnalysisBronchodilator efficacy and safety of indacaterol 150 μg once daily in patients with COPD: an analysis of pooled data.
Indacaterol is an inhaled, once-daily long-acting β(2)-agonist bronchodilator for regular use in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). As indacaterol is the first once-daily β(2)-agonist to be developed, it is relevant to evaluate its bronchodilator efficacy, safety, and tolerability. ⋯ Indacaterol was an effective bronchodilator and was well tolerated, with a good safety profile over 12 weeks of treatment. It should prove a useful treatment for patients with moderate-to-severe COPD.
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Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis · Jan 2011
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyEffects of beclomethasone/formoterol fixed combination on lung hyperinflation and dyspnea in COPD patients.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common disease characterized by airflow obstruction and lung hyperinflation leading to dyspnea and exercise capacity limitation. ⋯ BDP/F extra-fine combination is effective in reducing air trapping and dyspnea in COPD patients with lung hyperinflation.