Tuberkuloz ve Toraks-Tuberculosis and Thorax最新文献

Introduction: Clinicopathological parameters related to programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression levels have been investigated in several studies. However, the results of these studies are conflicting and vary in different populations. This study aimed to investigate the relation of clinicopathological parameters with PD-L1 expression level in advanced stage non-small cell lung cancer patients.

Materials and methods: The patients diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer were enrolled, retrospectively. The data of clinicopathological parameters was collected. Clinicopathological parameters in relation to PD-L1 expression levels (0%, 1-50%, and >50%) were analyzed as univariable and multivariable.

Result: In total, 384 patients were enrolled. PD-L1 expression in tumor cells was between 1-50%, and >50% in 41.4%, and 23.4% of patients, respectively. There was no PD-L1 expression in 35.2% of the patients. In univariable analysis, we found that the parameters associated with PD-L1 expression levels revealed that metastatic site number, the subtype of cancer, diagnostic material type, platelet number, and LDH level were statistically significant. Adenocarcinoma frequency was higher in tumors that had PD-L1 expression >50% than in tumors that did not express PD-L1 and the difference was statistically significant (p= 0.04, coefficient= 0.3, 95% CI 0.09-0.94). Cytology as diagnostic material was significant in PD-L1 level 1-50% comparing to >50% (p= 0.02, coefficient= 2.2, 95% CI= 1.08-4.46).

Conclusions: According to the results of our study, many of the clinicopathological parameters are not related to the PD-L1 level. The histological subtype and diagnostic material may affect the level of PD-L1 expression.

Introduction: Currently, there are four different diagnostic criteria systems for allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA): The Rosenberg-Patterson, Seropositive ABPA (ABPA-S), Central Bronchiectasis and ABPA (ABPA-CB), and the International Society for Human and Animal Mycology (ISHAM) ABPA study group criteria. This study aims to retrospectively compare these four diagnostic criteria in ABPA patients.

Materials and methods: Patients who were followed up with the diagnosis of ABPA were retrospectively re-evaluated using these four diagnostic criteria, and the superiority of these criteria to each other was determined.

Result: A total of 10 ABPA patients were included in the study. Seven patients were diagnosed according to ISHAM ABPA study group diagnostic criteria and six patients according to the Rosenberg-Patterson diagnostic criteria. None of the patients fulfilled the criteria when evaluated individually with ABPA-S and ABPA-CB. Of patients diagnosed by ISHAM, five had a total IgE level above 1000 IU/mL and two had below 1000 IU/mL.

Conclusions: We demonstrated that the diagnostic criteria developed by the ISHAM ABPA study group were superior to the others in diagnosing ABPA in cases with a total IgE level above 1000 IU/mL. However, all these criteria seem to be sufficient to diagnose ABPA in patients with a total IgE below 1000 IU/mL. We believe the necessity to demonstrate presence of Aspergillus fumigatus precipitating antibodies or specific IgG positivity should be questioned particularly in patients with radiologic findings compatible with ABPA and a total IgE level below 1000 IU/mL.

We report a rare case of eosinophilic pneumonia with nodules, which required a differential diagnosis of lung cancer. She had been treated for rheumatoid arthritis and bronchial asthma for eight years. Although there were no exacerbations of symptoms of rheumatism, newly development of nodules and ground-glass opacities in both upper lobes of the lung were found in the chest CT scan. A bronchoalveolar lavage obtained from the right middle lobe showed 58.8% eosinophils. The transbronchial biopsy from the lesion of the nodular shadow could not be performed because the patient developed an asthma attack during the examination of bronchoscopy. Chest CT scan performed one month after the start of prednisolone treatment showed that not only GGOs but also nodules showed shrinkage or almost disappeared. In some patients with eosinophilic pneumonia, there may be nodules that need to be differentiated from lung cancer. In such cases, the presence of GGOs around the nodule might be an important finding in imaging examination. To confirm the diagnosis, performing a tissue biopsy should be actively considered. Patients with eosinophilic pneumonia might also have bronchial asthma, and attention should be paid to the onset of asthma attacks during bronchoscopy.

The first application of modern non-invasive mechanical ventilation (NIV) can be traced back to over 30 years ago when a patient suffering from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy was successfully ventilated. Since then, the use of NIV has been on the rise throughout the world. Although a very modern and safe therapy, complications during its application are inevitable. In addition to some well-known complications, others have described more rare entities. In this article, we described such rare complications as pneumoperitoneum, pneumocephalus, parotitis, gastric perforation, and barotrauma. The purpose of this review was to describe unusual complications of NIV, their prevalence, and the mechanisms by which such complications arise. We performed a clinical review by searching PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane libraries with Mesh terms: 'non-invasive mechanical ventilation', 'high-flow nasal cannula', 'rare complication', 'unusual complication', and 'unexpected complication'. These terms were cross-referenced with other keywords: 'pneumoperitoneum', 'parotitis', 'pneumocephalus', 'gastric insufflation', and 'barotrauma'. We included 26 research papers. When applying mechanical ventilation, it is necessary to have a strong knowledge of the mechanics of the device as well as familiarity with the complications that may occur during its use, including less common ones. Prompt and effective treatment of such complications is required, as well as careful consideration of the potential causes of such events, during the application of NIV or HFNC.

Introduction: Although it is known that the effects of pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) programs in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) decrease over time, the results of the repeat PR programs are contradictory. Our study aimed to compare the effectiveness of the initial and the repeat PR programs on functional outcomes in COPD patients.

Materials and methods: Thirty two COPD patients who completed a second PR program were included in our retrospective cohort study. Eight-week PR program was applied to the patients twice with at least a one-year interval in between. mMRC Dyspnea Scale, Six-Minute Walk Test, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, 36 Item Short Form Survey (SF-36), and St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) were performed before and after both programs. The gains from the initial and the repeated programs were compared.

Result: Six-minute walk distance, dyspnea, and quality of life improved following both programs (p<0.05). Improvements in six-minute walk distance (p= 0.009), dyspnea (p= 0.003), and SGRQ quality of life (p= 0.037 for activity score, p= 0.050 for total score) were found to be significantly higher in the initial PR program.

Conclusions: Although many of the gains obtained from the repeated PR programs were similar to the initial PR program, the improvements in walk distance, perception of dyspnea, and quality of life obtained in the initial PR program were higher compared to the repeated PR program.

Introduction: Pneumococcal infections and exacerbations are important causes of mortality and morbidity in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The use of inhaled corticosteroids and pneumococcal vaccination are suggested for the control of the disease progression and exacerbations. The aim of this study is to assess the effect of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine on pneumonia and exacerbation in COPD patients using inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs). The secondary aim is to analyze the effect of ICS use and different ICS types, if administered, on exacerbation and pneumonia incidence in the study population.

Materials and methods: Medical records of 108 adult patients with COPD who were vaccinated with the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) were retrospectively evaluated. The number of acute exacerbations and pneumonia within one year before and after vaccination were evaluated in all included COPD patients. The comparison analysis was also performed based on the ICS types.

Result: There were statistically significant differences between the mean numbers of pneumonia and exacerbations before and after vaccination (p<0.05). There were no significant differences in the mean pneumonia attacks and acute exacerbations between patients using ICS and not using ICS (p> 0.05).

Conclusions: This study revealed that PCV13 provides a significant decrease in both exacerbation and pneumonia episodes in COPD patients. On the other hand, the use of ICSs and the types of ICSs were not found to have adverse effects on pneumonia and acute exacerbations in vaccinated COPD patients.

Introduction: It is known that there is a complex interaction between asthma and cardiovascular physiology. Some investigations on echocardiography and electrocardiography (ECG) in asthmatic patients have revealed many findings such as pulmonary hypertension (PHT) and arrhythmia. In this study, we aimed to perform tissue Doppler imaging (TDIE) and conventional echocardiographic (CEI) assessment with many indexes of arrhythmia on electrocardiography (ECG) in asthmatic patients.

Materials and methods: A total of 89 patients, 63 females (70.8%) and 26 males (29.2%), were included in this study. Patients were divided into three groups, and then each group was separated in two groups as mild-moderate and severe asthma.

Result: There was no difference among groups with respect to age, sex and anthropometric data. There was no difference between the groups with respect to indexes of arrhythmia on ECG (p> 0.05). Mitral annular plane systolic excursion (MAPSE), tricuspid annular alane systolic excursion (TAPSE) and both ventricular diastolic velocities on CEI were similar between the groups, except for left ventricular A wave velocity which was higher in severe asthmatic patients (p<0.05). Investigation of time intervals of both ventricular diastolic filling velocities (e' and a') at the mitral lateral, septal and tricuspid lateral annulus revealed significant difference at Pa'm-3 and Pa's-3 intervals based on TDEI (p<0.05). Only maximal volume of the LA was higher in severe asthmatic patients (p<0.05). However, there was no significant difference between LA-VpreA and LA-Vmin (p<0.05).

Conclusions: Based on these results, it can be suggested that LA mechanical functions and intra-atrial LA electromechanical durations were impaired in severe asthmatic patients.