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Respiratory
AI detects pneumonia through hearing a cough – Korean findings
New artificial intelligence-based technology can diagnose pneumonia by listening to someone cough, and scientists say if rolled out, people could diagnose themselves without going...
Persistent asthma linked to increased heart disease risk – US study
A recent study found that people with persistent asthma had higher levels of inflammation and more artery plaque than those without asthma, suggesting they...
Rodents may transmit fungal respiratory infections to humans – US study
Of all emerging diseases afflicting people around the globe, 75% are zoonotic (from animals), with a recent study from the US confirming that rats...
EV-D68, the respiratory virus that can paralyse children
The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported a spike in EV-D68, a contagious virus that in rare cases can lead...
High asthma risk for sons of fathers exposed to second-hand smoke – Australia study
Research has showed that fathers who smoke around their sons boost the asthma risk by nearly three-quarters for their future grandchildren – and not...
Urban youths’ asthma attacks decreased with mepolizumab – US clinical trial
A monoclonal antibody, mepolizumab, cut asthma attacks by 27% in black and Hispanic children and adolescents with severe asthma living in low-income urban neighbourhoods,...
Fibre-glass industry workers at high risk of chronic respiratory conditions – KZN study
A study carried out at a factory in Durban found that workers in the fibre-glass reinforcement industry are literally choking on plastic, with their...
Respiratory virus killing 100,000 children a year – systemic analysis
Recent research has cast the spotlight on a viral disease – the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) – that is killing more than 100,000 children...
Inhaled steroids promote secretions which block treatment in severe asthma patients – US study
Patients with severe asthma produce special substances in their airways when taking medicine during an asthma attack that block the treatment from working.
Two different...
Prenatal BPA exposure linked to asthma in girls – Meta-analysis of 8 European birth cohorts
An analysis of data from more than 3,000 mother-child pairs from six European countries indicates that prenatal exposure to bisphenol A may have negative...
Pulse oximeters deliver unreliable readings across ethnic groups
A non-invasive test with a pulse oximeter provided false readings of nearly 7% higher in a group of mixed race patients with COVID-19, compared...
Zinc supplements may prevent respiratory tract infections and shorten duration — Trials meta-analysis
A zinc supplement might help stave off the symptoms of respiratory tract infections (RTI), such as coughing, congestion, and sore throat, and cut illness...
Respiratory infectious disease transmission 3x higher in enclosed spaces — Korea study
Transmission risks of respiratory infectious diseases could be up to three times higher in confined spaces than open spaces, a Korean study has found.
The...
NIH: Hyaluronan is effective in treating chronic lung disease
Inhaling unfragmented hyaluronan improves lung function in patients suffering from severe exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), found a small study from researchers...
Cancer survivors at higher flu hospitalisation and mortality risk. Also severe COVID?
Survivors from a wide range of cancers are more likely than people in the general population to be hospitalised or die from seasonal influenza...
Cooking with wood may cause extensive lung damage — Radiological Society
Advanced imaging with CT shows that people who cook with biomass fuels like wood are at risk of suffering considerable damage to their lungs...
Reducing psychological trauma in ARDS patients on mechanical ventilation
Researchers Dr Richard Schwartzstein, and co-authors has examined ventilation and medication strategies that can help avoid psychological trauma for severe COVID-19 survivors treated for...
Osteoporosis treatment may also significantly protect against pneumonia
Nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates (N-BPs) such as alendronate, which are widely used to treat post-menopausal osteoporosis, are linked with significantly lower risks of pneumonia and of...
Nicotine exposure alone leads to pulmonary hypertension — first study
A study conducted by a team of researchers at Louisiana State University Health New Orleans has shown for the first time that chronic exposure...
Smoking during pregnancy results in an increased risk of asthma even in adulthood
Exposure to cigarette smoke is known to increase the risk of asthma in childhood, but research findings on its later effects are scarce. A...
3D printing saves patients' lives in Italian hospital
When a hospital in Brescia, in one of the hardest-hit Italian regions for coronavirus infection, urgently needed valves for a breathing devices that the...
A third of patients with severe asthma taking harmful doses of oral steroids
A third of patients with severe asthma are taking harmful doses of oral steroids, according to a study of several thousand people in The...
Three-in-one inhaler therapy improves lung function and reduces exacerbations
Patients with severe asthma which is not controlled with standard treatment – leaving them at risk of severe asthma attacks – could benefit from...
African American children respond differently to asthma medications
African Americans suffer asthma more often and more severely than Caucasian patients. However, clinical trials that have shaped treatment guidelines have included few African...
E-cigs can trigger same lung changes seen in smokers, emphysema
E-cigarette 'vaping' is widely assumed to be safer than cigarette smoking, but scientists at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine have uncovered...
Non-invasive ventilation strategy superior with prem babies
A Chinese study has found superiority of nasal high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (NHFOV) superior to other respiratory support methods for avoiding re-intubation among preterm babies.
"To...
Critical errors in inhaler technique in almost 50% of children with asthma
In the first study to evaluate inhaler technique in children hospitalised for asthma – the group at highest risk for complications and death from...
Fish oil does not improve asthma control
Fish oil does not appear to improve asthma control in adolescents and young adults with uncontrolled asthma who are overweight or obese, according to...
Cystic fibrosis patients may receive insufficient antibiotics to fight lung infections
The majority of paediatric patients with cystic fibrosis may not achieve blood concentrations of antibiotics sufficiently high enough to effectively fight bacteria responsible for...
Nearly half of women with asthma may develop COPD
More than 4 in 10 women with asthma may go on to develop chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a study conducted in...
Smoking marijuana may increase risk of lung problems
Smoking marijuana once a week can cause coughing, wheezing and phlegm – all signs of chronic bronchitis, an evidence review by researchers at University...
As-needed combo-drug inhaler a viable treatment solution in mild asthma
A large international trial has found an as-needed combined-drug inhaler treatmet that is a viable option with mild asthma, where up to 80% of...
Temporary increase in inhaled steroids benefits severe asthma
Serious asthma attacks in adults can be reduced by a temporary but significant increase in the dose of inhaled steroids during severe episodes of...
Tomatoes and apples help lung function in former smokers
A study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found the natural decline in lung function over a 10-year period was slower...
GPs fail to spot two out of every three cases of pneumonia
Testing for fever, high pulse rate, crackly breath sounds, and low oxygen levels could be key to helping GPs distinguish difficult to diagnose pneumonia...
Vitamin D protects against severe asthma attacks
Taking oral vitamin D supplements in addition to standard asthma medication could halve the risk of asthma attacks requiring hospital attendance, according to research...
Steroid inhalers in COPD management must be 'carefully weighed' — large study
Older people who use steroid inhalers for asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are more likely to suffer particular bacterial infections, according to...
Markers distinguish viral from bacterial infections in respiratory illness
Scientists from the National Institutes of Health-funded Respiratory Pathogens Research Centre have identified 11 genetic markers in blood that accurately distinguished between viral and bacterial...
Treating prem babies with caffeine improves later lung function
Premature babies treated with caffeine have better lung function in mid-childhood than preemies not treated with caffeine, according to an Australian randomised controlled trial.
"Previous studies...
Novel flu test to speed up respiratory treatment
Doctors and researchers at the University of Southampton have developed a novel way of using a swab test which can rapidly diagnose flu and...