Research and Markets: Asthma: Clinician’s Desk Reference: Asthma Now Effects Around 7.2% of the World’s Population

DUBLIN–(Business Wire)–
Research and Markets
(http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/ddd8fd/asthma_clinician) has
announced the addition of the “Asthma: Clinician’s Desk Reference” book to their
offering.

As the series title implies each Clinicians Desk Reference will be a practical
resource and a daily aid for physicians in the hospital setting and in primary
care.

Asthma is one of the most important chronic disorders in the developed world.
Evidence from around the world shows the prevalence of asthma has increased
considerably since 1975, and now affects around 7.2% of the world population
(about 100 million individuals). In the UK asthma is now the most common chronic
disease affecting all age groups with approximately 11% of the population being
diagnosed as having asthma at some time in their lives.

Understanding of the basic mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of asthma has
improved dramatically over the past 20 years. Along with this increase in basic
scientific knowledge, randomised clinical trials have produced evidence to guide
clinicians in how to manage patients with asthma.

The book covers epidemiology, diagnosis and management, and takes a look at
future developments. The authors highlight the under diagnosis of occupational
asthma and emphasise the importance of effective patient education, particularly
asthma action plans. There are ten clinical cases dealing with common diagnostic
and management problems, frequently asked questions and appendices containing
resources for patients and clinicians including useful websites, information
leaflets and major references.

Key features:

* Covers epidemiology, diagnosis, and management of asthma in children and
adults
* Focus on occupational asthma
* Chapter on asthma in primary care
* Clinical cases
* Resources for doctor and patient, plus frequently asked questions

Key Topics Covered:

1. The size of the problem

2. Scientific principles of asthma

3. Making a diagnosis of asthma

4. Inhaler devices

5. Long term management of asthma in adults

6. Management of acute asthma in adults

7. Management of childhood asthma

8. Occupational asthma

9. Educating patients and clinicians

10. Asthma in primary care

11. The future

12. Clinical cases

13. Frequently asked questions by patients

Practice points

Index

For more information visit

http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/ddd8fd/asthma_clinician

Research and Markets
Laura Wood, Senior Manager
press@researchandmarkets.com
U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907
Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

Copyright Business Wire 2010

Spain’s Almirall lowers outlook on drug price cuts

June 1 (Reuters) – Spain’s Almirall (ALM.MC) has cut its 2010 guidance after a new round of drug price reductions, becoming one of the first in the pharmaceutical industry to announce the impact of a European-wide austerity drive.

Healthcare

Almirall, best known for its asthma and allergy drugs, said it expects revenue to fall by about 5 percent in 2010 from the 925 million euros ($1.13 billion) posted in 2009.

This compares with the company’s original forecasts for full-year revenue to be stable or slightly lower.

Net profit excluding one-off items will also fall by about 5 percent in 2010, the drug firm said on Tuesday.

Last month, Spain announced a further wide range of price cuts for patented drugs from Aug. 1, following a 1.5 billion euro hit in March. Drug prices have been in the firing line as European governments tackle ballooning budget deficits, and smaller European-based drug firms like Almirall were expected to be among the hardest hit. [ID:nLDE64G20F]

(Reporting by Tracy Rucinski; Editing by Erica Billingham)

Stressful job can increase risk of asthma

London May 27 (IANS) Being part of a stressful job can increase a person’s risk of developing asthma by 40 percent, reveals a new study.

The research led by Heidelberg University in Germany tracked 5,000 men and women aged between 40 and 65 over eight years. They found that among those free of asthma at the start of the project, there was up to a 40 percent higher incidence of asthma eight years later if they suffered stress at work.

The signs were long working hours, demanding schedules and uncomfortable working conditions.

‘Our study suggests work stress and the inability to relax after work are associated with an increased risk of asthma,’ dailymail.co.uk quoted the report as saying.

Earlier studies have shown stress can lead to the release of chemicals that promote allergies and disrupt the way the body halts inflammation of the airways.

However, the team stressed that the absolute risk of someone developing asthma because they are overloaded at work is still very small.

The study appears in journal Allergy.

Minister says Icelandic volcanic ash cloud will not affect Scot human health

Edinburgh (Scotland), Apr.19 (ANI): Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond has said that dust from the volcanic ash cloud coming from Iceland presents no risk to health, agriculture or the environment of his country.

He said ongoing analysis of dust samples by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) had identified no current danger to human health.

But, according to The Scotsman, health experts have advised those with respiratory conditions, such as asthma, to keep medication to hand when they are outdoors.

Environmental monitoring, using information from the network of 75 air and 25 radioactivity-monitoring sites across Scotland, is set to continue.

Yesterday, Salmond said: “SEPA”s ongoing analysis of volcanic dust has shown that it contains no harmful material and presents no risk at present to public health, agriculture or the wider environment.”

The First Minister”s comments came after a meeting of the Scottish Government Resilience Cabinet sub-committee (SGoRR). (ANI)

First-Ever Published Study Underscores Significant Economic Burden of Hereditary Angioedema on Patients, Families and the Healthcare System

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–(Business Wire)–
Dyax Corp. (NASDAQ: DYAX) announced the publication of a first-ever
comprehensive examination of the economic burden associated with the treatment
of acute attacks and chronic management of hereditary angioedema (HAE). The
results, published today in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, bring
to light the substantial direct and indirect medical costs of the disease on
patients, payers and society. The economic study is one component of a larger
survey-based Burden of Illness (BOI) study which assessed both the economic and
humanistic burden of HAE. The BOI study was conducted by Dyax in conjunction
with the United States Hereditary Angioedema Association (HAEA) and United
Biosource Corporation (UBC).

Monetizable and non-monetizable costs were captured in the study and highlighted
HAE`s costly and detrimental impact for patients, payers and society.
Monetizable costs averaged $42,000 annually per HAE patient. Costs included
direct costs associated with emergency care, physician visits, hospital stays,
tests and procedures, and medications, as well as indirect costs such as missed
work days and reduced productivity. Costs increased with disease severity.
Patients who reported their most recent attack as severe amassed an estimated
$96,000 in annual per patient costs. The largest cost component, accounting for
approximately 48% of total costs for the average HAE patient, is emergency room
visits and hospital stays for managing acute attacks.

Additional non-monetizable costs were reflected in the study yet were not part
of the quantifiable analysis. These costs, which further exacerbate the economic
burden on patients, payers and society, included the burden of increased
depression, reduced income potential and missed opportunities. These
non-monetizable costs consist of the cost of managing depression (42.5% percent
of patients showed signs of at least mild depression and 19.5% reported that
they were taking psychotropic or antidepressant medication), and the financial
consequence of common activities being impacted such as driving, exercising and
studying. Other costs that were not part of the analyses include the expense of
improper procedures and medications as well as indirect costs related to
non-paid caregivers. As such, these compounding costs underestimate the total
costs associated with HAE.

“I have made several sacrifices in my career and personal life because of HAE.
The unpredictability and frequency of my laryngeal attacks have made it
impossible for me to continue working as a computer operator and, as a result,
I`ve been out of work for twelve years,” said Joan Angert, who was not
officially diagnosed with HAE until nine years ago, though she suffered from its
symptoms for 30 years.

HAE is a rare genetic disease characterized by unpredictable acute episodes of
severe, often painful swelling affecting the extremities, abdomen and the
larynx. On average, participants experienced 26.9 acute attacks per year. HAE is
estimated to affect 1:10,000 to 1:50,000 individuals. More than half (56.5%) of
the respondents from the study reported that they experienced painful abdominal
symptoms for their most recent attacks while 24.5% reported laryngeal symptoms.
Laryngeal attacks pose the greatest risk with the potential for asphyxiation.

“Our study provides a comprehensive survey of the burden patients with HAE live
with,” explained lead author David Wilson, MA, Assistant Professor, MGH
Institute of Health Professions. “The breadth of the economic consequences
highlighted in this study hopefully will raise people`s understanding of the
disease and inform them of the value of having new therapies available for the
people with HAE.”

Study Methodology

The Burden of Illness study, developed in consultation with expert health
economists, HAE experts, and HAE patients, was conducted from November 2007 to
January 2008. Study participants were recruited using the HAEA database of HAE
patients. The study collected responses from 457 HAE patients via an
Institutional Review Board-approved, web-based survey that solicited information
on attack characterization, acute attack treatment, chronic disease management,
impact on work and patient costs. A standardized instrument, the Work
Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) tool, was included to assess impact
on work and productivity. Standard medical costs and U.S. average wage costs
were assigned to survey items to assess direct medical and indirect costs,
respectively.

About HAE

Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is a rare acute inflammatory condition characterized
by episodes of severe, often painful swelling affecting the extremities, the
gastrointestinal tract, the genitalia, and in the larynx. HAE is caused by low
or dysfunctional levels of C1 esterase inhibitor (C1-INH), a naturally occurring
molecule that inhibits plasma kallikrein, a key mediator of inflammation, and
other serine proteases in the blood. HAE is estimated to affect 1:10,000 to
1:50,000 individuals. Learn more at www.HAEHope.com.

About Dyax

Dyax is a fully integrated biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering,
developing and commercializing novel biotherapeutics for unmet medical needs,
with an emphasis on inflammatory and oncology indications. The Company utilizes
its proprietary drug discovery technology, phage display, to identify antibody,
small protein and peptide compounds for clinical development. Dyax also
leverages this technology broadly with over 70 revenue generating licenses and
collaborations for therapeutic discovery, as well as in non-core areas such as
affinity separations, diagnostic imaging, and research reagents. Dyax is
headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts. For online information about Dyax
Corp., please visit www.dyax.com.

Dyax Corp.
Ivana Magovčević-Liebisch, 617-250-5759
Executive Vice President Corporate Development and General Counsel
imagovcevic@dyax.com
or
Nicole Jones, 617-250-5744
Director, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
njones@dyax.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

Study links asthma to air pollution

Researchers examining Melbourne hospital data believe that three per cent of all asthma hospitalisations in 2006 were related to exposure to pollutants such as nitrogen dioxides.

The study also found four per cent of all asthma hospitalisations in children were related to airborne particulates.

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has compared data about hospital admissions and air pollution levels in 2006.

The institute’s Dr Adrian Webster says he hope the research will improve they way air pollution is addressed.

“So the intention [in the] long term is to be able to inform discussions around air quality standards for example, and what are considered safe levels of exposure to air pollutants,” he said.

He said the one of their goals is to be able to link air pollution data with the impact on health.

“At an individual level, they want to teach people with asthma to interpret pollution levels they often see on TV weather reports and to link it to their own health,” he said.

Dr Webster says there is no routine monitoring of the impact of dust storms or bushfires on air quality, which could help hospitals prepare for an increase in serious asthma cases.

Stress during pregnancy ‘ups offspring”s asthma risk’

Washington, Mar 19 (ANI): Stress during pregnancy may increase offspring”s risk of asthma, say researchers.

Researchers at Brigham and Women”s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston investigated differences in immune function markers in cord blood between infants born to mothers in high stress environments and those born to mothers with lower stress and found marked differences in patterns that may be associated with asthma risk later in life.

“This is the first study in humans to show that increased stress experienced during pregnancy in these urban, largely minority women, is associated with different patterns of cord blood cytokine production to various environmental stimuli, relative to babies born to lower-stressed mothers,” said Rosalind Wright, M.D., M.P.H., associate physician at Brigham and Women”s Hospital.

The findings have been published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society”s American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. (ANI)

War trauma ups asthma risk among civilians

Washington, Mar 16 (ANI): The risk of developing asthma increases if a person lives through the trauma of war, claims a study.

Published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, the study found that those who are most traumatised are twice as likely to develop the condition as those who are least traumatised by their experiences of war.

The authors base their findings on a random sample of just over 2000 Kuwaiti civilians who endured the Iraqi invasion and seven month occupation of their country in 1990, and were aged between 50 and 69 at the time.

Between 2003 and 2005, these civilians were quizzed about their health, including a diagnosis of asthma after liberation; experiences of the war; and lifestyle factors, such as smoking and weight.

The researchers acknowledge that assessing the impact of war related trauma is difficult, because some of the stressors may be unique to a particular situation and the circumstances can be complex. So they used a validated questionnaire (Harvard Trauma Questionnaire), supplemented with face to face interviews to capture individual experiences.

Around one in six men and one in five women did not experience trauma during the war. But two thirds of the men and over half of the women feared for their lives.

Among the 413 participants with a low war related stress (Rasch) score, only one reported having been assaulted; three said they had been arrested; and 28 had had their house searched. None had witnessed torture, rape, or executions.

But among the 517 with a high stress score, around one in 10 had been arrested; one in six had been assaulted; and more than half had witnessed torture. New cases of asthma after liberation had been diagnosed in 6.6 percent of the men and just under one in 10of the women.

There was a direct correlation between the amount of trauma experienced and the risk of developing asthma, even after adjusting for factors likely to influence the results, including exposure to air pollution as a result of burning oil fires.

Those who had experienced the most trauma were twice as likely to develop asthma as those who had been the least traumatised. (ANI)

Action plan to phase out consumption of HCFC is on track: Ramesh

New Delhi, Sep 16 (ANI): Union Environment and Forest Minister Jairam Ramesh said on Wednesday that India has developed a comprehensive Road Map and Action Plan to phase-out of production and consumption of Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) in various sectors.

Addressing the gathering during the 15th International Ozone Day here Ramesh said: “The Government of India has taken a number of policy measures, fiscal and regulatory, to encourage the early adoption of alternative technologies in this area by existing and new enterprises.”

Ramesh hailed the Montreal Protocol as the most successful international treaty to ever achieve universal participation.

“At a time when the world is trying to solve the problem of climate change, the International Ozone Day provided a timely reminder of how international cooperation can help to solve major global environmental problems,” Ramesh added.

India is one of the first developing countries to join the Montreal Protocol and pledge its commitment to protect the Ozone Layer.

As a part of the accelerated phase-out of CFCs, India has completely phased out the production and consumption of CFCs as on 1 August 2008, 17 months prior to the agreed schedule.

Ramesh informed that over 97percent of controlled Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) have been phased out by the Montreal Protocol.

“The end of 2009 will mark another significant milestone in the history of its implementation, with the use of potent ODSs -CFCs, Carbon Tetra Chloride (CTC) and Halons, except pharmaceutical-grade CFCs used in the manufacture of Metered Dose Inhalers (MDIs) – being ceased completely,” he said

The CFCs required for manufacturing for MDIs used by Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) patients are still available in India, a national transition strategy to phase them out by 2013 is currently under implementation.

“The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), with support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the World Bank recently also launched the India: Chiller Energy Efficiency Project to accelerate the conversion of CFC-based chillers using new, more energy efficient technologies,” Ramesh said.

This year’s theme for the ozone day was ‘Universal participation – Ozone protection unifies the World.’ (ANI)

Changes in humidity, temperature may trigger asthma among kids

Washington, September 15 (ANI): Changes in humidity and temperature may trigger asthma among kids, suggests a report.

Published in the journal Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the report says that such weather changes have been found to result in a rise in Emergency Department (ED) visits for paediatric asthma exacerbations.

“We found a strong relationship between temperature and humidity fluctuations with pediatric asthma exacerbations, but not barometric pressure,” said Dr. Nana A. Mireku, an allergist at Dallas Allergy Immunology private practice in Dallas, formerly at Children’s Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit.

“To our knowledge, this is the first study that demonstrated these correlations after controlling for levels of airborne pollutants and common aeroallergens.

“Our study is also one of the few to examine the possibility that the weather one or two days before the asthma exacerbation may be as important as that on the day of admission, as the additional ED visits occur one to two days after the fluctuation,” she added.

The authors of the report write that patients experiencing an asthma attack often complain that weather fluctuations are a major trigger.

Dr. Mireku said: “the latest National Institutes of Health guidelines list ‘change in weather’ as a possible precipitating factor for asthma, but no previous studies have really examined this potential trigger in a rigorous fashion.”

According to the report, the retrospective 2-year study was performed at a large urban hospital of 25,401 children visiting the ED for an asthma exacerbation.

The researchers collected data on climactic factors, pollutants and aeroallergens on a daily basis.

They used time series analysis to evaluate the relationship of daily or between-day changes in climactic factors and asthma ED visits, controlling for seasonality, air pollution and aeroallergen exposure.

The effects of climactic factors were evaluated on the day of admission and up to five days before admission.

The researchers found that a 10 percent daily increase in humidity on a day or two before admission was associated with approximately one additional ED visit for asthma.

The authors write that between-day changes in humidity from two to three days prior to admission were also associated with more ED visits.

Daily changes in temperature on the day of or the day before admission increased ED visits, with a 10 degree F increase being association with 1.8 additional visits.

“Asthma is the most common chronic illness in childhood. Allergists have long known that weather conditions such as extremely dry, wet or windy weather can affect asthma symptoms. This study further defines the role of temperature and humidity on children’s asthma and confirms the importance of working with patients to identify the source of their symptoms and develop treatment plans that help prevent them,” said allergist Richard G. Gower, president of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI). (ANI)

38-year-old Delhi woman dies of swine flu, toll rises to six

New Delhi, Sep.11 (ANI): A 38-year-old woman has become Delhi’s sixth swine flu victim.

Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital Medical Superintendent N.K. Chaturvedi said the victim, Raj Bala, was a resident of Faridabad and had been admitted with swine flu symptoms on September 5. He said that she died this morning.

Bala was both diabetic and hypertensive and had a past history of bronchial asthma.

Chaturvedi said she died of pulmonary edema.

Earlier, a 12-year-old girl, Gauri, a resident of Dwarka had died at the same hospital on Thursday. (ANI)

Punjab authorities launch drive to uproot “Congress Grass”

Nag Khurd (Amritsar), Sep.5 (ANI): Farmers in Punjab are confronted with an unusual problem these days. A weed described as “Congress Grass” has covered all soil-bunds in the fields here and the administration is taking up measures to educate farmers about how to obviate it.

The “Congress Grass” is said to be a major biological pollutant of the environment. It is described as one of the seven most destructive weeds of the world.

Locally known as ‘Gajar Buti’, the Congress Grass has become an ecological nuisance especially on sides of link roads and other waste lands. It causes Asthma, Allergy and skin diseases to humans and also the animals.

It becomes a host for dangerous insects. Nowadays the vast growth of this weed can also be seen on roadsides and other wastelands.

Observing its harmful effects on the fields, the agriculture department has decided to pull out the “Congress grass” from its roots.

It is a mechanical technique in which fodder cutter machines attached to tractors are to be used to clear the area covered up by Congress Grass.

The novel technique of mechanical removal of this weed from the sides of link roads and wastelands in Amritsar district was started on Thursday.

Authorities are spreading public awareness among farmers through demonstrations about the new technique with the help of fodder cutting machine by eradicating Congress Grass.

With the help of the machines, the farmers are able to get rid of this menace of “Congress Grass” more effectively and rapidly.

The idea to use fodder cutting machine for this purpose has been conceived by Deputy Commissioner, Amritsar, Kahn Singh Pannu.

On Thursday, Pannu demonstrated to farmers by driving a tractor in Nag Khurd village in Majitha area about how to pull out the “Congress Grass”.

Talking to ANI Pannu said, this is first time in Punjab that they are cutting the hazardous weed “Congress Grass” with fodder cutter machines and it is giving god results.

According to Pannu, Congress Grass is not only harmful to the crop but also causes severe skin problems like rashes and itching and some time cause respiratory diseases.

“Through demonstration, we are creating awareness and educating the farmers to get rid of this unwanted weed by applying new methods,” Pannu said.

With the help of department of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Rural Development, about 20 Fodder Cutter Machines in the district will be employed for the removal of the Congress Grass from the berms and the waste lands in the district.

The farmers, who own these machines, will operate them to remove the weed and they will be paid for their services by the Panchayats (village councils).

“Since these day we have ample time so we would pull out the Congress Grass by applying the new method,” said Satnam Singh, a farmer, while adding that it is more convenient as there has been always a shortage of labour in Punjab.

“Apart from the damage to crop through reduced yields, Congress Grass is weakening the strength of the land,” said Inder Preet Singh, another farmer.

Appreciating the efforts being made by administrative authorities, Singh said he feels that agriculture department should organize more camps so that the more farmers could benefit by eradicating the Congress Grass from their field. By Ravinder Singh Robin(ANI)

Scientists identify ‘tipping points’ at which sudden shifts to new conditions occur

Washington, September 3 (ANI): In a new research, scientists have identified ‘tipping points’ at which sudden shifts to new conditions occur in the world.

The research was done by Martin Scheffer of Wageningen University in The Netherlands and co-authors, including William Brock and Stephen Carpenter of the University of Wisconsin at Madison and George Sugihara of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, California.

They found that abrupt changes in ocean circulation and Earth’s climate, shifts in wildlife populations and ecosystems, the global finance market and its system-wide crashes, and asthma attacks and epileptic seizures share generic early-warning signals that indicate a critical threshold of change dead ahead.

The team found that similar symptoms occur in many systems as they approach a critical state of transition.

“It’s increasingly clear that many complex systems have critical thresholds – ‘tipping points’ – at which these systems shift abruptly from one state to another,” according to the scientists.

Especially relevant, they discovered, is that “catastrophic bifurcations,” a diverging of the ways, propel a system toward a new state once a certain threshold is exceeded.

A system follows a trail for so long, then often comes to a switchpoint at which it will strike out in a completely new direction.

That system may be as tiny as the alveoli in human lungs or as large as global climate.

“These are compelling insights into the transitions in human and natural systems,” said Henry Gholz, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF)’s Division of Environmental Biology, which supported the research along with NSF’s Division of Ocean Sciences.

“The information comes at a critical time – a time when Earth’s and, our fragility, have been highlighted by global financial collapses, debates over health care reform, and concern about rapid change in climate and ecological systems,” he added.

It all comes down to what scientists call “squealing,” or “variance amplification near critical points,” when a system moves back and forth between two states.

“A system may shift permanently to an altered state if an underlying slow change in conditions persists, moving it to a new situation,” said Carpenter.

According to scientists, “In systems in which we can observe transitions repeatedly, such as lakes, ranges or fields, and such as human physiology, we may discover where the thresholds are.”

“If we have reason to suspect the possibility of a critical transition, early-warning signals may be a significant step forward in judging whether the probability of an event is increasing,” they added. (ANI)

Foul odour from industrial chicken rendering facilities may soon be history

Washington, Aug 27 (ANI): A research team led by Indian-origin scientist from North Carolina State University has devised a new technique that can help eliminate foul odour and air pollutants from industrial chicken rendering facilities.

Rendering facilities take animal byproducts (e.g., skin, bones, feathers) and process them into useful products such as fertilizer. However, the rendering process produces extremely foul odours.

Currently, the industry uses chemical “scrubbers” to remove odor-causing agents, but this technique is not very effective.

Furthermore, some of the odour-causing compounds are aldehydes, which can combine with other atmospheric compounds to form ozone – triggering asthma attacks and causing other adverse respiratory health effects.

According to Praveen Kolar, assistant professor of biological and agricultural engineering, the inexpensive treatment process uses ozone and specially-designed catalysts to break down the odour-causing compounds.

The new technique with an effective filtration system takes advantage of catalytic oxidation to remove these odour-causing pollutants.

This process takes place at room temperature, so there are no energy costs, and results in only two byproducts: carbon dioxide and pure water.

The researchers developed the catalysts by coating structures made of activated carbon with a nanoscale film made of cobalt or nickel oxides.

“We used activated carbon because its porous structure gives it an extremely large surface area meaning that there is more area that can be exposed to the odorous agents,” said Kolar.

The cobalt and nickel oxide nanofilms make excellent catalysts, Kolar explains, “because they increase the rate of the chemical reaction between the odour-causing compounds and the ozone, making the process more efficient. They are also metals that are both readily available and relatively inexpensive.” (ANI)

Oral asthma controllers more effective than inhalers

Washington, Aug 26 (ANI): Asthmatic patients are more likely to benefit from oral controllers than inhalers, say Mayo clinic researchers.

“Clinical superiority of the inhaled products has been well documented in clinical trials and the HealthCore study confirmed this for those who take their medication properly,” said Dr. Joseph Singer, vice president of clinical affairs for HealthCore, the outcomes research subsidiary for WellPoint, Inc.

“However, we were surprised to discover that in looking at all patients in real-world settings, oral controllers appeared to be a better choice of treatment because of better compliance.

“Patients with the best outcomes were those who were compliant with inhaled corticosteroids,” he added.

During the study, researchers looked at 55, 000 patients from eight health plans who had used at least one of six types of asthma controller medications between 2003 and 2005.

Both oral and inhaled treatments offered comparable impacts on patient-reported quality of life and productivity.

Among patients taking more than one drug to control their asthma, HealthCore found that a combination of inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting beta-agonists were the best course of treatment in terms of better clinical outcomes and better quality of life.

In the group of patients who adhered to their medication, those taking leukotriene modifiers-oral asthma controllers-were more likely to have an emergency room or inpatient physician visit, less likely to use six or more short-acting beta agonist canisters and incurred higher annual costs.

“It’s important for physicians and health plans alike to know that ‘one size fits all’ does not apply when treating asthma patients,” said Singer.

“These results speak to the power of comparative effectiveness research and its ability to give physicians the information they need to customize treatment for patients in the real world,” he added. (ANI)

Smoking mums-to-be putting future generations at increased health risk

Washington, Aug 25 (ANI): Mums-to-be who smoke are not only putting their unborn child at increased health risk but future generations also, according to a new study.

Researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) has found that the life-long effects of maternal smoking during pregnancy may occur through specific changes in DNA patterns.

They showed that children exposed in the womb to maternal smoking had differences in DNA methylation, an epigenetic mechanism in which small chemical compounds are added to DNA.

“This study provides some of the first evidence that in utero environmental exposures such as tobacco smoke may be associated with epigenetic changes,” said one of the lead authors Carrie Breton, Sc.D., assistant professor in the Department of Occupational and Environmental Health at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

“This could open up a new way for researchers to investigate biological mechanisms that might explain known health effects associated with maternal smoking,” she added.

Prenatal exposure to smoke is associated with a number of health problems, including childhood asthma, cardiovascular disease, and lower pulmonary function later in life.

“Moms should not be smoking during pregnancy,” said Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., the director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, a component of the National Institutes of Health that helped fund the USC study.

“Maternal smoking during pregnancy is not only detrimental to the health of the mom and the newborn child, but research such as this suggests that it may impact the child into adulthood and possibly even future generations as well,” she added.

The study appears in the September issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. (ANI)

Laughter may be the ‘worst’ medicine for asthmatics

Melbourne, Aug 24 (ANI): A good laugh is considered to be the best medicine, but a new research suggests that it may trigger serious asthma attacks.

This makes laughter a serious matter for 40 percent per cent of Australia’s 2 million asthma sufferers, according to a new study.

The online poll of 200 sufferers, conducted by drug company AstraZeneca’s, has backed university research that revealed laughter can spark the chronic respiratory illness in up to half of asthmatics.

A more serious concern from this research is that three quarters of asthmatics believe their asthma is well managed but the majority put up with lifestyle restrictions because of their illness.

The survey reflected both a University of NSW 2004 study published in the Journal Of Asthma and a New York University 2005 study Laughter May Trigger Asthma Attacks.

Almost two thirds found themselves breathless when doing housework or shopping, while half struggled to do their favourite activities.

More than one third felt tired because of disturbed sleep.

A further one in five cancelled social engagements because of their asthma.

Concord Hospital thoracic physician Professor Christine Jenkins said well-managed asthma should not hamper the enjoyment of any of life’s pleasures.

“Worryingly, these findings show that while many believe they have their asthma under control, the asthma is actually controlling them and their lifestyles,” the Daily Telegraph quoted her as saying. (ANI)

Cellular crosstalk contributes to asthma, pulmonary hypertension

Washington, Aug 18 (ANI): Crosstalk between cells lining the lung (epithelial cells) and airway smooth muscle cells could be linked to lung diseases, such as asthma and pulmonary hypertension.

Already, it is known that such crosstalk is important in lung development.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, have now molecularly characterized one crosstalk pathway in mice, which could provide potential new therapeutic targets for treating individuals with lung diseases, such as asthma and pulmonary hypertension, which are caused, at least in part, by affects on airway smooth muscle cells.

The team, led by Edward Morrisey and Ethan David Cohen, used numerous in vivo gain- and loss-of-function approaches to demonstrate that a Wnt7b/Tnc/Pdgfr crosstalk pathway was important for mouse smooth muscle development.

They also showed that lung epithelial cells exclusively express Wnt7b and the developing airway smooth muscle cells express Pdgfr.

Particularly, expression of the components of this crosstalk pathway was upregulated in a mouse model of asthma and humans with pulmonary hypertension.

Thus indentifying the Wnt/Tnc/Pdgfr crosstalk pathway is equally important in both lung development and adult lung disease. (ANI)

Kartar Devi Died | Kartar Devi Passed Away | Haryana Minister Kartar Devi Died

Kartar Devi Died | Kartar Devi Passed Away | Haryana Minister Kartar Devi Died

Haryana, Cabinet minister in Haryana, Kartar Devi, died today, 16th August 2009 after a prolonged illness. She was 66 years old.

She was admitted to the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) here since July following multiple complications, including acute asthma, state government officials said. She was on ventilator support for over 15 days. She passed away in the hospital Sunday.

She was the health minister in Haryana till earlier this month. She held the charge of social justice and some other departments as well.

Haryana Governor Jagannath Pahadia and Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda condoled the death of Kartar Devi saying the state had lost a good social crusader and administrator.

Fruit, vegetable intake cuts upper respiratory tract infection risk in pregnant women

Washington, July 10 (ANI): Eating nutritious foods, especially fruits and vegetables, could reduce pregnant women’s risk of developing an upper respiratory tract infection (URTI), according to a new study.

Researchers Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have found that consumption of at least seven servings per day of fruits and vegetables moderately reduced the risk of developing URTI in expectant mothers.

URTIs include the common cold and sinus infections, which can lead to lower respiratory problems, such as asthma or pneumonia.

Even though the majority of URTIs are uncomplicated colds, identifying ways to prevent their occurrence is important because colds are the most common reason for school and work absences.

Eating fruits and vegetables improves immunity but hadn’t previously been associated with reducing the risk of URTIs in pregnant women.

The researchers studied more than 1,000 pregnant women and found those who ate the most fruits and vegetables were 26 percent less likely to have URTI relative to those who ate the least amount.

Neither fruit nor vegetable intake alone was found to be associated with the five-month risk of URTI.

The patterns observed for total fruit and vegetable intake and either fruit or vegetable intake alone in relation to the three-month risk of URTI were consistent with those when assessing the five-month risk of URTI.

Women in the highest quartile of fruit and vegetable intake had a stronger reduced three-month risk than the five-month risk of URTI. Moreover, there was a significant decreasing linear trend for the three-month risk of URTI with consumption of fruits and vegetables.

Pregnant women have been recommended to consume at least five servings of fruits and vegetables per day. This study showed that intake of higher levels, 6.71 servings per day, was associated with a moderate risk reduction for URTI.

“Pregnant women may require more fruits and vegetables than usual because of the extra demands on the body,” said senior author Martha M. Werler, M.P.H., Sc.D., professor at Slone Epidemiology Center at Boston University.

The study appears online in the journal Public Health Nutrition. (ANI)