BACKGROUND In the day to day care of obstructive airways diseases (asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) important decisions such as disease classification and choice of therapy are based on assessment of the bronchodilator response. However, surprisingly little is known of the long term course of the bronchodilator response in patients with obstructive airways disease. METHODS Da...

BACKGROUND Data are lacking from general population studies on how to define changes in lung function after bronchodilation. This study aimed to analyze different measures of bronchodilator response of forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC) and slow vital capacity (SVC). MATERIALS AND METHODS Data were derived from the Swedish Cardiopulmonary Bioimage Study (...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the modulatory effects that dynamic hyperinflation (DH), defined as a reduction in inspiratory capacity (IC), has on exercise tolerance after bronchodilator in patients with COPD. METHODS An experimental, randomized study involving 30 COPD patients without severe hypoxemia. At baseline, the patients underwent clinical assessment, spirometry, and incremental cardiopulm...

The aim of this study was to describe the impact of using bronchodilators on the prevalence of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in a population-based survey (Platino study). A cluster sampling of subjects 40 years of age or older, representative of the metropolitan areas of 5 Latin American cities (Sao Paulo, Mexico, Montevideo, Santiago and Caracas) was chosen. Spirometry according to ATS...

BACKGROUND Heliox and forward-leaning posture (torso inclined forward at 50-60° with the elbows resting on the thighs) are adjuncts in the administration of nebulized bronchodilator to patients with acute asthma. METHODS We randomized 59 patients who presented to the emergency department in severe asthma crisis, into 4 treatment groups: nebulized bronchodilator + oxygen; nebulized bronchodila...

BACKGROUND Tiotropium is used in maintenance treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), but there are no guidelines on when to start tiotropium following an exacerbation. OBJECTIVE To determine whether the addition of tiotropium to a respiratory-therapist-directed bronchodilator protocol affects bronchodilator costs for patients hospitalized for COPD exacerbation. METHODS We...

Attention has recently been directed to the possible lethal effect of aerosol sympathomimetic agents in the treatment of bronchial asthma (Speizer, Doll, Heaf and Strang, 1968), death being attributed to an excitatory action on the heart. Animal studies indicate that practolol (I.C.I. 50,172, Eraldin) specifically blocks cardiac beta-adrenergic receptors, preventing arrhythmias or other alterat...

In the last 2 decades, anticholinergic agents have been generally regarded as the first-choice bronchodilator therapy in the routine management of stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and, to a lesser extent, asthma. Anticholinergics are particularly important bronchodilators in COPD, because the vagal tone appears to be the only reversible component of airflow limitation in COPD...

BACKGROUND Bronchodilators are increasingly being used in patients undergoing mechanical ventilation. There are multiple factors that affect bronchodilator delivery during mechanical ventilation. These factors can be classified into three categories: ventilator-related factors, circuit-related factors and device-related factors. AIMS The purpose of this paper is to review in depth each of the...

Knowledge of short- and longer-term repeatability of lung function in health and disease is essential to determine bronchodilator reversibility thresholds and to recognise if changes in lung function represent disease progression, therapeutic intervention or normal variability. Multiple-breath washout indices (lung clearance index, conductive ventilation inhomogeneity (Scond)) and specific airw...