D yspnoea and reduced exercise tolerance are the hallmarks of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In the advanced phases of the disease the ability to exercise is mainly limited by the combination of a reduced ventilatory capacity, increased ventilatory requirement and lung dynamic hyperinflation. Importantly, the aforementioned respiratory mehanical abnormalities are well recognised ...

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, namely, pulmonary emphysema and chronic bronchitis, is a chronic inflammatory response of the airways to noxious particles or gases, with resulting pathological and pathophysiological changes in the lung. The main pathophysiological aspects of the disease are airflow obstruction and hyperinflation. The mechanical properties of the respiratory system and it...

BACKGROUND Hyperinflation (HI) is performed following open endotracheal suctioning (OES), whose goals include: to stimulate a cough, recover oxygenation and improve compliance. However, it may also induce unintended consequences, including: lung stress and strain, failure to maintain high distending pressure, and subsequently cycling recruitment and derecruitment. Here, our aim was to investiga...

BACKGROUND Several recent studies have suggested that 1 minus-forced expiratory volume expired in 3 seconds / forced vital capacity (1-FEV3/FVC) may be an indicator of distal airway obstruction and a promising measure to evaluate small airways dysfunction. AIMS To investigate the associations of 1-FEV3/FVC with the spirometric measures and lung volumes that assess small airways dysfunction an...

OBJECTIVE Previous research indicates the beneficial effects of humor among healthy adults. Little is known about the physical and psychological effects of sense of humor and laughter among patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). METHODS Patients with COPD (n = 46; mean age ± SD, 66.9 ± 9.9 years) completed assessments of sense of humor, depression, anxiety, quality of lif...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the presence of airway obstruction by determining the FEV1/FVC and FEV1/slow vital capacity (SVC) ratios. METHODS This was a quantitative, retrospective cross-sectional study. The sample comprised 1,084 individuals who underwent spirometry and plethysmography in a central hospital in Lisbon, Portugal. The study sample was stratified into six groups, by pulmonary funct...

BACKGROUND: Of the electrocardiographic changes in chronic obstructive lung disease (COLD) patients, a shift of the P wave axis greater than 90 which is highly characteristic, is said to be due to hyperinflation and does not occur in interstitial lung disease. OBJECTIVE : To describe the electrocardiographic changes in chronic obstructive lung disease patients. METHODS: The electrical axis of t...

Lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) and bronchoscopic lung volume reduction (bLVR) are palliative treatments aimed at reducing hyperinflation in advanced emphysema. Previous work has evaluated functional improvements and survival advantage for these techniques, although their effects on the micromechanical environment in the lung have yet to be determined. Here, we introduce a computational mo...

Surgical lung volume reduction can improve exercise performance and forced expiratory volume in one second in patients with emphysema. However, the procedure is associated with a 5% mortality rate and a nonresponse rate of ,25%. Accordingly, interest has focused on alternative ways of reducing lung volume. Two principle approaches are used: collapse of the diseased area using blockers placed en...

During the last 4 years we have seen 13 children with a severe bronchiolitis. The children have had prolonged respiratory illnesses waxing and waning over many months, often requiring oxygen therapy for long periods. The diagnosis is based on a clinical picture similar to acute bronchiolitis, but persisting for months, frequently associated with failure to thrive, coupled with lung function evi...