We report two Japanese male professional breath-hold divers (33 and 39 years of age) who experienced neurological disorders during repetitive dives to over 20 m of seawater. One patient had right homonymous hemianopsia, and the other presented with right hemiparesis with facial involvement and sensory deficit. In addition, they each had a history of neurological problems following such dives. M...

We give a r#{233}sum#{233} of “chemical testing” for alcohol in the United States in connection with traffic-law enforcement. Recent procedural and instrumental developments are briefly reviewed. Various factors involved in discrepancies between the results of analyses of near-simultaneous venous blood and breath specimens from the same subject are examined. Because the causes of these discrepa...

BACKGROUND Aerosol production during normal breathing is often attributed to turbulence in the respiratory tract. That mechanism is not consistent with a high degree of asymmetry between aerosol production during inhalation and exhalation. The objective was to investigate production symmetry during breathing. METHODS The aerosol size distribution in exhaled breath was examined for different b...

Halitosis or bad breath is a taboo subject that is a widespread problem in the general population. Causes of bad breath can be multifactorial and long time sufferers can be marred from deep psychological stress. Because nine out of ten cases have an oral cause, the initial inquiry should be with a dentist. In a retrospective study from February 2003 to February 2010, the halitosis clinic at the...

This international task force report updates general considerations for bronchial challenge testing and the performance of the methacholine challenge test. There are notable changes from prior recommendations in order to accommodate newer delivery devices. Rather than basing the test result upon a methacholine concentration (provocative concentration (PC20) causing a 20% fall in forced expirato...

BACKGROUND High levels of exhaled carbon monoxide (eCO) are a marker of airway or lung inflammation. We investigated whether hypo- or hyperventilation can affect measured values. METHODS Ten healthy volunteers were trained to achieve sustained end-tidal CO2 (etCO(2)) concentrations of 30 (hyperventilation), 40 (normoventilation), and 50 mmHg (hypoventilation). As soon as target etCO(2) values...

OBJECTIVE Multiple, short and deep inspiratory breath-holds with air of approximately 20 s are now used in radiotherapy to reduce the influence of ventilatory motion and damage to healthy tissue. There may be further clinical advantages in delivering each treatment session in only one single, prolonged breath-hold. We have previously developed techniques enabling healthy subjects to breath-hold...

Inhalation of insulin is the first alternative route of insulin administration, which has been developed to such a mature status that the first product (Exubera, Pfizer) was made available to the market and subsequently withdrawn as of early 2008. In view of the relatively low bioavailability of inhaled insulin and the intraindividual variability of the metabolic effect induced (which is in the...

halitosis generally refers to the unpleasant odor of breath irrespective of its origin. oral malodour  could  result in diverse problems in daily life such as social embarrassment and can adversely affect individuals’ social interactions. though many oral and non-oral sources  could give rise to halitosis,  it was mainly associated with oral cavity conditions and volatile sulfur compounds –prod...

AIM To compare microvascular reactivity assessed in the skin using laser Doppler fluximetry (LDF) in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and gestational age-matched control during pregnancy. METHODS 110 pregnant women at ~33 weeks gestation participated in the study. Skin microvascular reactivity was evaluated by LDF, at rest, during the response to brief arterial occlusion (post o...