Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease News and Research

Latest Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease News and Research

ALung completes pilot study of Hemolung RAS in COPD patients

ALung Technologies, Inc., a leading developer of innovative lung assist devices, presented an analysis of its recent clinical trial of the Hemolung Respiratory Assist System (RAS) in patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

19 Jun 2012

Better care for dual-eligible Medicare-Medicaid patients could reduce hospitalization rates

Providing better care for dual-eligible Medicare-Medicaid patients could significantly reduce hospitalization rates for this population, saving taxpayers between $625 million and $1.9 billion per year, according to a new study by researchers at RTI International and Florida Atlantic University.

15 Jun 2012

Study reviews data on influence of contralateral carotid occlusion on CEA and CAS

A new study, presented at the 66th Vascular Annual Meeting presented by the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) reviewed data on the influence of contralateral carotid occlusion (CCO) on carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and carotid artery stenting (CAS) for which there is a paucity of conflicting data.

11 Jun 2012

Study examines factors linked with survival after CEA in patients with asymptomatic ICA stenosis

While carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is performed to prevent stroke, long-term survival is essential to ensure benefit, especially in asymptomatic patients. A new study presented at the 66th Vascular Annual Meeting presented by the Society for Vascular Surgery today examined patient factors associated with 5-year survival following CEA in patients with asymptomatic internal carotid artery (ICA) stenosis.

11 Jun 2012

HCMS, ACOEM announce important expansion to Blueprint for Health

The American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) and the HCMS Group have announced an important expansion to their "Blueprint for Health" - a free internet-based calculating tool that helps employers better comprehend and analyze the impact of medical costs, absence, and work impairment among their employees.

5 Jun 2012

Smoking during pregnancy affects weight of the newborns

Smoking during pregnancy has widely documented health repercussions both for mother and baby. A study at the University of Zaragoza on 1216 newly born babies confirms that those born to mothers who smoke weigh and measure less.

1 Jun 2012

Pseudomonas infection signals poor outcome for COPD patients

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease who are infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa have a worse clinical outcome and are more likely to be hospitalized than those without the infection, states recent research.

30 May 2012

LVRC safe and effective choice for patients with severe heterogeneous emphysema

A tiny, resilient metal wire designed to gather and compress diseased lung tissue may offer relief to patients with severe heterogeneous emphysema, a subtype of the disease that involves specific, usually isolated areas of the lungs, according to the results of a multicenter international trial conducted in the Netherlands, Germany and France. The wire, called a lung volume reduction coil (LVRC), can be easily implanted and is designed to take the place of more invasive procedures used to improve the lung function of emphysema patients.

24 May 2012

COPD patients with P. aeruginosa infection more likely to have poor clinical outcomes

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who become infected with the bacterium Pseudomonas aerguinosa are more likely to have worse clinical outcomes and experience more hospitalizations during the course of their disease than COPD patients who are not infected, according to researchers from Buffalo, N.Y.

24 May 2012

Exercise can add years to a person's life

A recent study has shown that exercise can add years to a person's life. Still, as we age it can become more tedious and sometimes more difficult to exercise.

23 May 2012

IACs may increase risk of arrhythmias in young individuals with asthma

Use of inhaled anticholinergics (IACs) has been associated with an increased risk of potentially dangerous heart arrhythmias among young asthma patients, according to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

23 May 2012

Airway inflammation linked with asthma-related mortality rates in older adults

Higher mortality rates among older adult asthma patients compared to their younger counterparts may be due, at least in part, to an increase in airway inflammation, according to a study conducted by researchers in Canada, who note that their results imply that elderly patients are either less likely to follow asthma medication dosing instructions, or that the underlying airway inflammation in elderly patients is relatively resistant to current anti-inflammatory therapies.

22 May 2012

UAB creates Program in Environmental and Translational Medicine

The University of Alabama at Birmingham has created a Program in Environmental and Translational Medicine, a multi-faceted approach to dealing with health issues tied to environmental origins.

22 May 2012

Tuberculosis independently predicts death from lung cancer in the elderly

Tuberculosis independently predicts death from lung cancer in the elderly, according to a new study from researchers in Hong Kong.

21 May 2012

Exposure to parental smoking increases risk of respiratory symptoms in children

For more than three decades, researchers have warned of the potential health risks associated with exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), especially among children whose parents smoke. Now a new study conducted by researchers from the University of Arizona reports that those health risks persist well beyond childhood, independent of whether or not those individuals end up becoming smokers later in life.

21 May 2012

Specific risk factors linked with exacerbation-prone phenotype of severe asthma

A number of specific risk factors are associated with an exacerbation-prone phenotype of severe asthma, according to a new study from researchers in Sweden.

21 May 2012

Osteopenia/osteoporosis more prevalent among male patients with pulmonary disease

There is a very high prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis among male patients with pulmonary disease, according to a new study from researchers in California.

21 May 2012

Data from Almirall, Forest Labs’ aclidinium studies on COPD to be presented at ATS conference

Forest Laboratories, Inc. and Almirall, S.A. today announced that they will present aclidinium-related data in 1 poster discussion session and 3 poster presentations at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) International Conference scheduled May 18 - 23 in San Francisco, CA.

19 May 2012

Acupuncture may improve dyspnea in COPD patients

According to a small clinical trial reported by investigators from Japan, acupuncture appears to be associated with improvement of dyspnea (labored breathing) on exertion, in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a study published Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication.

14 May 2012

Comorbidities common among patients with COPD

Comorbidities are common among patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and a number of these comorbidities are independently associated with an increased mortality risk, according to a new study.

4 May 2012