Analysis of airflow in the terminal portion of the maximal expiratory flow volume curve has been suggested as a useful test for the early diagnosis of chronic airways obstruction. Whether such an ...

Pulmonary rehabilitation has established itself as a vital and core therapy for people with chronic lung disease. Significant improvements are seen in several patient outcomes, for the thousands ...

Cook and Strachan are to be congratulated on their series of meta-analyses on the health effects of passive smoking. However, in their analysis of parental smoking and spirometric indices they gave as ...

Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death worldwide. It causes chronic lung disease and predisposes individuals to acute lung injury and pulmonary infection. Alveolar macrophages are ...

Rationale Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is an effective, key standard treatment for people with COPD. Nevertheless, low participant uptake, insufficient attendance and high drop-out rates are reported ...

Background The National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) includes two oxygen saturation scales; the second adjusts target saturations to 88%–92% for those with hypercapnic respiratory failure. Using this ...

Cyclo-oxygenase (COX), also known as prostaglandin H synthase (PGHS), is the rate limiting enzyme for the conversion of arachidonic acid to prostanoids and exists in two isoforms. COX-1 is ...

Background This study aimed to evaluate whether incidental CT findings of emphysema, airway thickening and bronchiectasis, as seen on CT scans performed for other non-pulmonary clinical indications, ...

Rationale The role bacteria play in the progression of COPD has increasingly been highlighted in recent years. However, the microbial community complexity in the lower airways of patients with COPD is ...

Respiratory disease and symptoms are common problems in older people. Respiratory disease affects both the quality of life in elderly individuals and morbidity, 1 although estimates of the prevalence ...

Background Ramadan, observed by nearly two billion Muslims worldwide, involves fasting from dawn to sunset, presenting challenges for individuals with chronic respiratory diseases due to potential ...

This overview of intensive care medicine in Europe and the United States is an introduction to the review series on “The pulmonary physician in critical care” which starts in this issue of Thorax .