BACKGROUND Spirometric parameters are influenced by several factors and many reference data are available in the literature. However, no spirometric data are available for children and adolescents from Central Asia. AIM The study aimed to calculate spirometric reference curves on the basis of anthropometry, ethnicity (Kazakh vs. Russian) and living environment (urban vs. rural). SUBJECTS AN...

BACKGROUND Little is known about the sex-specific effects of cigarette smoking on the level and growth of lung function in adolescence, when 71 percent of people in the United States who smoke tried their first cigarette. METHODS We studied the effects of cigarette smoking on the level and rate of growth of pulmonary function in a cohort of 5158 boys and 4902 girls 10 to 18 years of age, exam...

OBJECTIVES We administered aerosolized histamine to 32 subjects with tetraplegia to determine whether there were differences in spirometric and/or lung volume parameters between responders and nonresponders. RESULTS Baseline pulmonary function parameters revealed mild to moderate restrictive dysfunction. We found that 25 subjects (78%) were hyperreactive to histamine (mean provocative concent...

BACKGROUND Breathlessness is the most common symptom in people with pulmonary arterial hypertension and congenital heart disease (CHD-APAH), previously thought to be caused by worsening PAH, but perhaps also by inflammation and abnormalities of lung function. We studied lung function and airway inflammation in patients with CHD-APAH and compared the results with controls. METHODS AND RESULTS ...

OBJECTIVES Time to onset of regional relaxation (T(R)) has been proposed as a novel index of regional myocardial function. This study sought to prospectively establish the feasibility and variability of T(R) in healthy volunteers (CONTROL) and to examine its utility in patients with inducible ischemia (PATIENT). BACKGROUND Strain rate imaging (SRI) depicts myocardial deformation and enables q...

OBJECTIVE An elevated C3 concentration has been reported in people with obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia, and has been proposed to play a role in the development of atherosclerosis. We hypothesized that an elevated C3 concentration might be linked to insulin resistance and/or hyperinsulinemia, abnormalities commonly observed in association with the above conditions. RE...

PURPOSE The present study was undertaken to evaluate onset, and early and late recovery of neuromuscular block after a combination of mivacurium (M) and rocuronium (R). METHODS In this controlled, randomized study, 45 consenting ASA I-II patients were assigned to one of three treatment groups: 2.ED95 R alone (2R); 2.ED95 R plus 1.ED95 M (2R1M). or 2.ED95 R plus 2.ED95 M (2R2M). Neuromuscular ...