Chest
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Pulse oximeters may produce less accurate results in non-White patients. ⋯ Compared with White patients, the prevalence of occult hypoxemia was higher in Black patients than in White patients about to undergo ECMO for respiratory failure, but it was comparable in Hispanic and Asian patients compared with White patients.
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Body composition measures, specifically low weight or reduced muscle mass, are associated with mortality in COPD, but the effect of longitudinal body composition changes is undefined. ⋯ Longitudinal loss of PMA is associated with increased all-cause mortality, regardless of BMI or initial muscle mass. Consideration of novel screening tests and further research into mechanisms contributing to muscle decline may improve risk stratification and identify novel therapeutic targets in ever smokers.
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Most pulmonary conditions reduce FVC, but studies of patients with combined pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema demonstrate that reductions in FVC are less than expected when these two conditions coexist clinically. ⋯ The presence of ILA attenuates the reduction in FVC associated with emphysema.
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The Confusion, Urea > 7 mM, Respiratory Rate ≥ 30 breaths/min, BP < 90 mm Hg (Systolic) or < 60 mm Hg (Diastolic), Age ≥ 65 Years (CURB-65) score and the Pneumonia Severity Index (PSI) are well-established clinical prediction rules for predicting mortality in patients hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). SARS-CoV-2 has emerged as a new etiologic agent for CAP, but the role of CURB-65 score and PSI have not been established. ⋯ PSI and CURB-65 score can predict in-hospital mortality for patients with SARS-CoV-2 CAP and non-SARS-CoV-2 CAP comparatively. In patients with SARS-CoV-2 CAP, the inclusion of either D-dimer or procalcitonin to PSI or CURB-65 score did not improve the prognostic performance of either score. In patients with CAP, regardless of cause, PSI and CURB-65 score remain adequate for predicting mortality in clinical practice.
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Respiratory and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) frequently coexist; however, there is limited evidence on the relationship between chronic respiratory symptoms in young adulthood and late-onset CVD. ⋯ gov.