BACKGROUND Several comorbid conditions may contribute to worsening asthma symptoms, including nasal polyps (NPs). Cysteinyl leukotrienes (Cys-LTs) play a crucial role in asthma pathophysiology, and specific receptors for CysLTs are reported as upregulated in nasal polyp tissues. The aim of the present study was to assess the prevalence of nasal polyps in severe vs. mild and moderate asthma, and...

Glycine allele at codon 16 has previously been associated with the increase in asthma severity, bronchial hyperresponsiveness and also the increase in inhaled corticosteroid dependence. This study was designed to evaluate the genetic alleles in mild asthma.Thirty-four patients with diagnosis of mild asthma (FEV1 ≥ 80%, positive methacholine test) and body mass index (BMI ≤ 30 Kg/m2) were includ...

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways. Symptoms of asthma are variable. That means that they can be mild to severe, intermittent to chronic. The one point to remember is that even when symptoms are mild, asthma should not be ignored. Untreated or under treated, asthma can lead to severe respiratory distress and in rare cases, sudden death. Asthma is the most common chronic dis...

  Background Endothelial Cell-Specific Molecule-1 (ESM-1) is a 50 kDa soluble proteoglycan that is produced mainly the vascular endothelial cells of the kidney and lung. It is produced by the effects of proangiogenic and pro-inflammatory cytokines, and it indicates activation and dysfunction of the vascular endothelium. We aimed to detect the role of ESM-1 in childre...

OBJECTIVE Rising U.S. asthma prevalence will be reflected in military applicants. We studied retaining mild asthmatics on active duty. METHODS A cohort study at Great Lakes Naval Training Center from 2000 to 2002 compared recruits diagnosed during basic training with mild asthma to matched comparison recruits on outpatient visits, hospitalizations, and discharge through August 2003. RESULTS...

Background Calprotectin is a cytosolic protein that belongs to the S-100 protein group with immunomodulatory and antiproliferative actions. The level of this protein increases in infection, inflammation, and malignancy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of...

Twenty-four patients of moderate persistent perennial asthma with documented aggravation to severe persistent asthma, during monsoon season in the past two years, were put on specific elimination diet during August and September. The diet was based on results of in-vitro allergy tests for a selected food panel. On specific elimination diet, five patients improved to mild persistent asthma and t...

The reaction of nitric oxide (NO) and superoxide anions (O(2)(-)) in the airway results in the formation of peroxynitrite, a highly reactive oxidant species. Peroxynitrite reacts with tyrosine residues in proteins to form the stable product nitrotyrosine. We investigated whether nitrotyrosine in exhaled breath condensates may be increased in patients with asthma. Four groups of nonsmoking subje...

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to explore whether serum baseline tryptase (sBT) levels might be a useful marker not only for the accurate diagnosis of childhood asthma, but also for the prediction of disease severity. METHODS A total of 114 asthmatic children were enrolled in this study, 36 of whom had mild intermittent asthma, 38 had mild persistent asthma, and 40 had moderate to sever...