International journal of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
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Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is currently the third leading cause of death in the world. Although smoking is the main risk factor for this disease, only a minority of smokers develop COPD. Why this happens is largely unknown. ⋯ COPD is in part mediated by dysregulated immune responses to cigarette smoke and other environmental insults. Although traditionally the lung has been viewed as a sterile organ, by using highly sensitive genomic techniques, recent reports have identified diverse bacterial communities in the human lung that may change in COPD. This review summarizes the current knowledge concerning the lung microbiota in COPD and its potential implications for pathogenesis of the disease.
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Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis · Jan 2014
ReviewDistinguishing adult-onset asthma from COPD: a review and a new approach.
Adult-onset asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are major public health burdens. This review presents a comprehensive synopsis of their epidemiology, pathophysiology, and clinical presentations; describes how they can be distinguished; and considers both established and proposed new approaches to their management. Both adult-onset asthma and COPD are complex diseases arising from gene-environment interactions. ⋯ The current management of chronic asthma in adults is based on achieving and maintaining control through step-up and step-down approaches, but further trials of back-titration in COPD are required before a similar approach can be endorsed. Long-acting inhaled anticholinergic medications are particularly useful in COPD. Other distinctive features of management include pulmonary rehabilitation, home oxygen, and end of life care.
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Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis · Jan 2014
Review Case ReportsUpdate on obstructive sleep apnea and its relation to COPD.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common and preventable lung disease that affects millions of people in the United States. Sleep disorders including obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are also common. ⋯ This relationship, however, puts people at risk for more nocturnal desaturations and potential complications related to this, including pulmonary hypertension and heart rhythm disturbances. This update focuses on the physiology of sleep disturbances in COPD as well as the clinical implications of OSA in COPD.
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Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis · Jan 2014
ReviewBiomarkers in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: confusing or useful?
The field of biomarker research has almost reached unmanageable proportions in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The developments of new technology platforms have generated a huge information data base, both cross sectionally and increasingly, longitudinally. ⋯ Nevertheless, the most crucial aspect in interpreting the current literature is the recognition of the relatively superficial characterization of what is a complex group of pathological processes with a common end point of airflow limitation. The current review explores some of these issues together with those areas where real progress appears to have been made, and provides caution on interpretation.
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Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis · Jan 2014
ReviewProfile of fluticasone furoate/vilanterol dry powder inhaler combination therapy as a potential treatment for COPD.
Currently, there is no cure for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The limited efficacy of current therapies for COPD indicates a pressing need to develop new treatments to prevent the progression of the disease, which consumes a significant amount of health care resources and is an important cause of mortality worldwide. ⋯ Fluticasone furoate/vilanterol dry powder inhaler combination therapy has been shown to be effective in many controlled clinical trials involving thousands of patients in the regular treatment of stable COPD. This is the first once-daily combination of ultra-long-acting inhaled β2-agonists and inhaled glucocorticoids that is available for the treatment of stable COPD and has great potential to improve compliance to long-term regular inhaled therapy and hence to improve the natural history and prognosis of COPD patients.