Chest
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Tobacco smoke exposure increases breathing problems of children. Texas Children's Health Plan is a Managed Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) managed care provider. The aim of this study is to determine associations among tobacco smoke exposure, asthma prevalence, and asthma health-care utilization. ⋯ Maternal smoking increases risk for asthma diagnosis and prescription of asthma quick relief medication. Maternal smoking predicted asthma-related ED visits only for the CHIP line of business.
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Microscopic vascular invasion (MVI) in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has been reported to be a strong predictor of poor outcomes but it has not been a descriptor of the TNM classification. The purposes of this study were to determine whether the presence of MVI is related to a predictor of poor outcomes and to explore the degree of MVI according to tumor size. ⋯ This study demonstrated that MVI was a strong predictor of poor outcomes and that the effect is more prominent in patients with tumor sizes ≤ 5 cm. Further analysis of survival and MVI should be collected for future revision of the TNM system.
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A 45-year-old woman who received a renal transplant 7 years prior presented with a 3-week history of low-grade fever, night sweats, and a dry cough with scant sputum production. Additionally, she reported generalized weakness and increased fatigability. She denied hemoptysis or weight loss, and there had been no change in medication or foreign travel. ⋯ She was sexually active with her boyfriend who worked as a prison guard. She also reported that she was briefly incarcerated 7 years ago shortly after her renal transplantation. Her immunosuppression consisted of tacrolimus, mycophenolate, and prednisone.
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Editorial Biography Historical Article
Giants in Chest Medicine: Leonardo M. Fabbri, MD.