abstract   background: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (copd) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality, and is an important health economic problem. since 1960, there has been an increase in mortality associated with copd, especially in men. acute exacerbations form a major component of the socioeconomic burden of copd which mainly results in long-term hospitalization. despite the high...

introduction: pulmonary hyperinflation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (copd) can increase the breathing rate and reduce diaphragmatic movements by pushing the diaphragms downward and limiting their movements; this, in fact, can affect the breathing process. the purpose of this study was to compare diaphragmatic movements in copd patients and healthy ones and to evaluate ...

chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (copd) is associated with a chronic inflammatory response in airways and lung parenchyma that results in significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. cigarette smoking considered as an important risk factor plays a role in pathogenesis of disease. pneumocystis jirovecii is an atypical opportunistic fungus that causes pneumonia in immunosuppressed host, al...

In recent years, the microbiome has been recognized as a key regulator of immune responses. Evidence suggests that changes in the microbiome can lead to chronic disease and even exacerbation of the disease. Impairment of innate immunity resulting from microbial incompatibility may worsen host susceptibility to infection and exacerbate chronic lung diseases. Specific microbes play a key role in ...

Sulfur mustard (SM) is a toxic agent that targets several tissues. It is the leading cause of persistent lung disease, progressive deterioration in lung function and mortality among patients. Disturbed sleep and poor quality of sleep are common in SM-exposed patients with chronic respiratory problems. Melatonin is an alternative medication that has been widely used to treat poor sleep quality c...

background and purpose: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (copd) has been recognized as a risk factor for invasive aspergillosis. airway colonization by aspergillus species is a common feature of chronic pulmonary diseases. nowadays, the incidence of copd has increased in critically ill patients. the aim of the present study was to isolate and identify aspergillus colonies in the respirator...

conclusions we found statistical differences in pct levels that would differentiate cap from acute exacerbation of copd in the ed setting. further studies are required to verify this finding. methods this cross-sectional prospective descriptive study was performed in the emergency department (ed) on patients with cap and acute exacerbation of copd. a total of 53 patients were included in this s...

introduction: corticosteroids are routinely used in management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (copd) exacerbation. the main purpose of present study was to compare the efficacy of methyl prednisolone (mp) and dexamethasone (dxm) for this purpose. methods: adult copd patients entered the present clinical trial. all patients received standard treatment on admission and were then divided...

nonencapsulated, nontypeable hemophilus influenzae (nthi) remains an important cause of acute otitis and respiratory diseases in children and adults. nthi bacteria are one of the major causes of respiratory tract infections, including acute otitis media, cystic fibrosis, and community-acquired pneumonia among children, especially in developing countries. the bacteria can also cause chronic dise...