The majority of cross-sectional studies have shown a higher prevalence of ventilatory impairment in welders while only few longitudinal studies were able to detect chronic effects on spirometry or bronchial responsiveness. The aim of the study was to determine the incidence of probable occupational asthma (OA), bronchial obstruction and hyperresponsiveness among 286 students entering an apprent...

STUDY OBJECTIVES The effects of gastroesophageal reflux on airway hyperresponsiveness in patients with bronchial asthma have yet to be studied in significant detail. The purpose of the present study was to determine how esophageal acid perfusion could change airway responsiveness in patients with bronchial asthma. PATIENTS AND INTERVENTIONS In seven patients with bronchial asthma (mean +/- SD...

We investigated the acute effect of ascorbic acid on histamine bronchial responsiveness (PC 20: concentration causing a 20% fall in FEV1) in 9 hospital staff members with upper respiratory tract infection (URI) and cough. Subjects were examined within 5 days from the start of illness and 6 weeks after. On day 1, the reproducibility of PC20 was assessed by 2 consecutive inhalation challenges 1 h...

considerably associated with BA severity (R 1⁄4 0.4) and IgE-autoreactivity only in obese asthmatics (R 1⁄4 0.58; P 1⁄4 0.01), which showed raised IgEautoAbs to keratin (11.6 6 2 IU/mL) and collagen III (1.03 6 0.3 IU/mL) in comparison with preobese (6.7 6 1.5 IU/mL, 0.3 6 0.01 IU/mL) and nonobese patients. The levels of total IgE in all groups showed no association with BMI and serum leptine c...

Both atopy and bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) are characteristic features of asthma. They are also found among non-asthmatic subjects, including allergic rhinitis patients and the general population. Atopy and BHR in asthma are closely related. Atopy induces airway inflammation as an IgE response to a specific allergen, which causes or amplifies BHR. Moreover, significant evidence of the c...

Many methods of testing nonspecific bronchial responsiveness have been devised, since Curry first demonstrated the heightened bronchial responsiveness of asthmatics to histamine. The preferred rou1e of administration of bronchoconstrictors at the presem Lime is by inhalation, rather than systemically, in order to minimize unacceptable side effects. The agents inhaled have included irritants, ch...