Rationale: Nuclear factor (NF)-kB is a prominent proinflammatory transcription factor that plays a critical role in allergic airway disease. Previous studies demonstrated that inhibition of NF-kB in airway epithelium causes attenuation of allergic inflammation. Objectives: We sought to determine if selective activation of NF-kB within the airway epithelium in the absence of other agonists is su...

BACKGROUND Noncystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (NCFB) is characterized by airway expansion and recurrent acute exacerbations. Macrolide has been shown to exhibit anti-inflammatory effects in some chronic airway diseases. OBJECTIVE To assess the efficacy of roxithromycin on airway inflammation and remodeling in patients with NCFB under steady state. METHODS The study involved an open-label des...

BACKGROUND Few studies have compared treatment strategies in patients with asthma poorly controlled on low dose inhaled corticosteroids, and little is known about the effects of different treatments on airway inflammation. In this double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel group study, we compared the effects of salmeterol plus fluticasone propionate (FP) (Seretide; SFC) and FP plus montelukast...

Aims. The aim of the study was to compare endotracheal intubation with i-gel and LMA (laryngeal mask airway) supreme supraglottic airway devices in orbital osteosynthesis surgery. Methods. 134 patients undergoing orbital plasty after fracture were enrolled in our study and were randomized into three groups: 43 in the endotracheal intubation group, 42 in the LMA-Supreme group, and 49 patients w...

Cellular levels of cAMP are an important determinant of airway smooth muscle tone. We have previously shown that chronic (18 h) but not acute (30 min or 2 h) pretreatment with the muscarinic receptor agonist carbachol resulted in decreased adenylyl cyclase activity in response to GTP, isoproterenol, or forskolin via a pathway blocked by the protein kinase C inhibitor staurosporine. The present ...

Awake flexible fiberoptic bronchoscope aided intubation (AFOBI) has revolutionized the ability of the anesthesia provider to safely care for difficult airway management and help prevent associated adverse side effects while dealing with a difficult airway like arterial hypoxemia, hypoventilation, aspiration. The flexible fiberoptic bronchoscope (FOB) is presently a critical tool available in sc...

The Combitube (Tyco-Kendall, Mansfield, MA) is a supraglottic airway device that has been used as an adjunct in the management of a difficult airway after failed attempts at endotracheal intubation both during cardiopulmonary arrest and in the setting of acute trauma (Fig 1). This device has replaced the previous esophageal obturator airway due to several reports of esophageal rupture. It has b...

IN 1874, Jacob Heiberg wrote that during chloroform anesthesia, noisy, obstructed breathing, particularly during inspiration, could be prevented by pulling the jaw forward. He was not sure how this worked and proposed freezing a corpse to find out. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find any report of this proposed study, which was conceived without the advantage of modern imaging methods. ...

Objectives. The primary objectives of this retrospective study were first to compare the upper and lower pharyngeal airway spaces between orthodontic patients with and without maxillary constriction and second to evaluate the effect of rapid maxillary expansion (RME) on these airway spaces. A secondary objective was to compare the mode of breathing between groups. Materials and Methods. The exp...

Obstructive sleep apnea is the result of repeated episodes of upper airway obstruction during sleep. Recent evidence indicates that alterations in upper airway anatomy and disturbances in neuromuscular control both play a role in the pathogenesis of obstructive sleep apnea. We hypothesized that subjects without sleep apnea are more capable of mounting vigorous neuromuscular responses to upper a...