Asthma

Paul V. Williams, MD, chair of the 2015 AAAAI annual meeting planning committee, discusses key presentations and features attendees should watch for at this year's event.

Challenging previous research, John Hopkins University investigators claimed race, poverty, and ethnicity - not residing in urban areas - were greater forecasters of asthma. However, they cautioned their study did not determine whether location is linked to a worsening in symptoms.

Patients can develop symptoms of both COPD and asthma, and the percentage increases as patients age.

Surgery to treat obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which entails tonsil and adenoid removal, also improved asthma in affected children, research suggested.

Study results published in the European Respiratory Journal show that rates of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) incidence have significantly increased in individuals with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Exposure to animal fur within the first 3 months of life decreases the risk of childhood asthma, according to research presented at the 2014 European Respiratory Society International Congress.

Whether asthma contributes to cardiovascular disease or not is a matter for continued research and study. Whether there is a direct link or not there has been considerable proof that the numbers for both conditions are on the rise.

"All kinds of obesity cause asthma," declared Akshay Sood, MBBS, FCCP during his presentation at CHEST 2014. In the scope of synergistic epidemics, the question of what kind of obesity causes asthma is a rather relevant one.

For patients diagnosed with occupational asthma, sometimes taking a step as simple as leaving work can improve their condition. For others, finding relief may be a much more involved process that requires more comprehensive treatment.

A recent study looked at the relationship between obesity and a child's risk of developing allergies or an asthmatic condition. Looking at what the authors perceived to be a growing trend of not only an increase in the number obese children but those suffering from new or worsening allergies the authors said they were looking for a link which could help treat the pediatric patients.

Among Latinos, a Native American heritage was linked to a lower rate of asthma development, while an African lineage resulted in an increased asthma risk, researchers at University of California San Francisco found.

By comparing healthy and asthmatic lung cells post-infection, Imperial College London researchers believe they have discovered a new treatment target for asthma.

Prenatal exposure to phthalates, a chemical commonly used in cosmetics, increases children's asthma risk, according to study results published in Environmental Health Perspectives.

Because a key antiviral defense mechanism is present in asthmatics, another defect in their immune system must explain their difficulty combating respiratory viruses, according to researchers from Washington University in St. Louis.

New research from Northwestern University has found that schools are woefully unprepared to deal with anaphylaxis and other life-threatening emergencies stemming from student allergies.

New questions about the risks of flying and the responsibilities of airlines have followed reports of anaphylaxis cases on two international flights in less than a month.

As Enterovirus D68 continues to spread across the US, the prognosis for children who are hospitalized with infections tends to be good. That applies to children with asthma, as well. "It's hard to say whether this virus is hitting kids with asthma harder than other viruses-but it is not causing as severe symptoms as other viruses out there, like adenovirus," said Christopher Carroll, MD, a pediatric intensivist and asthma specialist at Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford, CT. "Even certain strains of rhinovirus are worse," Carroll said.

Adherence is defined as conforming to the recommendations made by the provider with respect to timing, dosage, and frequency of medication taking, and following these recommendations is important for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) to fully benefit from disease-modifying therapies (DMTs).

New research suggests that oral immunotherapy may trigger anaphylaxis in an unusually high percentage of asthmatic teenagers with high-risk food allergies who failed to adhere to their management plan.

GlaxoSmithKline's Arnuity approved for patients over the age of 12 as part of treatment options

Dust mites are widely responsible for allergic irritation and breathing difficulties, but researchers from the University of Iowa researchers indicated a vaccine may be within reach.

The US Food and Drug Administration announced the approval of a new drug for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Agent Orange exposure several decades earlier may increase morbidity from various diseases, some of which have rarely been explored in previous epidemiologic studies.

If the results of a recent study are proven to last, then the previously held belief concerning the relationship between tuberculosis and the use of corticosteroids could be considered incomplete.

Designated "meaningful users" of electronic health record systems do not deliver improved care for common chronic diseases.

Contrary to popular belief, patients who are prescribed antidepressants experience only minimal weight gain within 12 months of treatment.

Although selective beta-blockers are generally better tolerated in asthma patients, a study published in Chest found the treatments are not without risk.

Combination treatment with a fixed dose of indacaterol and glycopyrronium bromide was associated with significant improvements in several measures of lung function and health status compared to placebo and tiotropium in treatment-naïve patients with COPD.

Subgroup analysis from four studies reveals treatment with a once-daily, fixed-dose combination of umeclidinium vilanterol improves lung function at 24 weeks for a broad range of patients with moderate to severe COPD.

Treatment with a fixed-dose combination of aclidinium 400 µg and formoterol 12 µg significantly improved bronchodilation in patients with moderate to severe COPD compared with aclidinium or formoterol monotherapy alone.