Breathing News and Research

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Cigarette smoking does not affect everyone in same way

Cigarette smoking induced COPD, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, is a disease that results in severe breathing difficulty. According to World Health Organization (WHO) it is the fourth leading killer worldwide. However the mechanisms responsible for some smokers developing COPD and others evading the disease have not been well understood.

4 Jun 2009

Discovery of protein that helps determine progression of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Researchers say the protein - Serum surfactant protein A - is superior to other IPF predictors and could lead to better decisions about treatment and timing of lung transplantation.

4 Jun 2009

Diabetic medication 'glibenclamide' may prevent nicotine-induced SIDS

According to researchers at McMaster University, exposure of the fetus to nicotine results in the inability to respond to decreases in oxygen - known as hypoxia - which may result in a higher incidence of SIDS.

3 Jun 2009

Simple MRI test involving breathing oxygen helps determine cancer therapy success

A simple magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test involving breathing oxygen might help oncologists determine the best treatment for some cancer patients, report researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

3 Jun 2009

Doctors warn about dangers of caffeine chewing gum

Doctors in Italy have issued a warning about chewing gum containing caffeine and say it can be dangerous for children and teenagers.

1 Jun 2009

Sleep disordered breathing in children in a general population sample: prevalence and risk factors

A study in the June 1 issue of the journal SLEEP found that waist circumference and body mass index (BMI) are consistent, independent risk factors for all severity levels of sleep disordered breathing (SDB) in children, suggesting that as with adult SDB, metabolic factors are important risk factors for childhood SDB.

1 Jun 2009

Surgery effective in treating pediatric obstructive sleep apnea

Infants and young toddlers with obstructive sleep apnea and sleep disordered breathing experience significant improvement following surgical treatment of the ailment, according to an invited article in the June 2009 issue of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.

1 Jun 2009

Boy born with half a heart survives and thrives

Rhonda Ellison was six months pregnant when she and her husband, James Gaines, got the kind of news all parents dread going into an ultrasound: something was wrong with their baby. They needed to go to the Children's Heart Center at Golisano Children's Hospital.

27 May 2009

Treating pain with depression

Pain, the most common reason for adults to visit a primary care physician, and depression, the most frequent mental complaint requiring a doctor's appointment, occur together as often as half the time.

26 May 2009

Nervous system may be culprit in Pompe disease

Brain may win out over brawn as the primary cause of breathing problems in children with a severe form of muscular dystrophy known as Pompe disease.

25 May 2009

Study finds sleep apnea widely undiagnosed among obese type 2 diabetics

Sleep apnea has long been known to be associated with obesity. But a new study published in the June issue of Diabetes Care finds that the disorder is widely undiagnosed among obese individuals with type 2 diabetes - nearly 87 percent of participants reported symptoms, but were never diagnosed.

21 May 2009

Vitamin D may halt lung function decline in asthma and COPD

Vitamin D may slow the progressive decline in the ability to breathe that can occur in people with asthma as a result of human airway smooth muscle (HASM) proliferation, according to researchers at the University of Pennsylvania.

20 May 2009

Chinese body and mind training gets results with students in just 5 days!

Chinese researchers have unravelled how a training technique adapted from traditional Chinese medicine works to reduce stress and enhance learning.

19 May 2009

Diabetics who have retinopathy should also be screened for obstructive sleep apnea

The eyes may be the window into the soul, but they may also contain important medical information. According to new research to be presented at the American Thoracic Society's 105th International Conference in San Diego on May 19, patients with diabetes who have retinopathy should also be screened for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

19 May 2009

Researchers look at eczema asthma link

Many young children who get a severe skin rash develop asthma months or years later. Doctors call the progression from eczema, or atopic dermatitis, to breathing problems the atopic march. In the May 2009 issue of PLoS Biology, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report another step taken towards understanding the process of atopic march.

18 May 2009

Study looks at transpalatal advancement pharyngoplasty procedure for sleep apnea

Treatment with surgery or an oral appliance that adjusts the jaw is associated with improvements in obstructive sleep apnea, a condition caused by blocked upper airways in which patients periodically stop breathing during sleep, according to two reports in the May issue of Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery.

18 May 2009

Mock CPR drills in kids show many residents fail in key skills

Research from the Johns Hopkins Children's Center exposes alarming gaps in training hospital residents in "first response" emergency treatment of staged cardiorespiratory arrests in children, while at the same time offering a potent recipe for fixing the problem.

18 May 2009

Snoring and sleep apnoea damage the brain

Australian researchers have found that the effects of sleep apnoea on the brain of a sleeping patient are far worse than previously thought.

17 May 2009

Preconceptional folate supplementation and the risk of spontaneous preterm birth

Taking folic acid supplements for at least a year before conception is associated with reduction in the risk of premature birth, according to a study by Radek Bukowski (from the University of Texas Medical Branch, United States of America) and colleagues, published in this week's PLoS Medicine.

12 May 2009

Sufferers of mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea may benefit from exercise

Practicing certain tongue and pharyngeal exercises may reduce symptoms of mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), according to new research being published in the second issue for May of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

7 May 2009