American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Sep 2015
Associations Between Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Sleep Duration, and Abnormal Fasting Glucose: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.
No data exist as to the role of ethnicity in the associations between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), sleep duration, and metabolic dysfunction. ⋯ This large multiethnic study confirmed previous reports of an independent association between OSA and metabolic dysfunction, and suggested that this association may vary by ethnicity.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Sep 2015
Semi-quantitative Culture Analysis During Therapy for Mycobacterium avium Complex (MAC) Lung Disease.
Microbiologically based criteria such as sputum culture conversion to negative have traditionally been used to define treatment success for mycobacterial diseases. There are, however, limited data regarding whether nontuberculous mycobacterial sputum culture conversion or semiquantitative culture analysis correlates with subjective or nonmicrobiologic objective indices of treatment response. ⋯ Early semiquantitative sputum agar plate culture results can be used to predict symptomatic and radiographic improvement as well as long-term sputum culture conversion to negative in this population. We suggest that semiquantitative sputum culture scores can be a useful tool for evaluating new nontuberculous mycobacterial lung disease therapies.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Sep 2015
B-cell Activating Factor: An Orchestrator of Lymphoid Follicles in Severe COPD.
Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have increased pulmonary lymphoid follicle (LF) counts. B cell-activating factor of tumor necrosis factor family (BAFF) regulates B cells in health, but its role in COPD pathogenesis is unclear. ⋯ Our data support the hypothesis that B-cell BAFF expression creates a self-perpetuating loop contributing to COPD progression by promoting pulmonary B-cell survival and LF expansion.