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Pulmonary health effects of air pollution

Purpose of the review: Air pollution continues to be a major public health concern affecting nine out of 10 individuals living in urban areas worldwide. Exposure to air pollution is the ninth leading risk factor for cardiopulmonary mortality. The aim of this review is to examine the current literature for the most recent updates on health effects of specific air pollutants and their impact on asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and respiratory infection. Recent findings: A total of 52 publications were reviewed to establish new insights as to how air pollution is associated with pulmonary morbidity and mortality. Considerable past evidence suggests that air pollution is an important factor that enhances pulmonary disease, while also causing greater harm in susceptible populations, such as children, the elderly, and those of low socio-economic status worldwide. Asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and respiratory infections all seem to be exacerbated because of exposure to a variety of environmental air pollutants with the greatest effects because of particulate matter, ozone, and nitrogen oxides. New publications reviewed reaffirm these findings.

Summary: Continued vigilance will be essential to lessen the effects of air pollution on human health and pulmonary disease. Cooperation at a multinational level will be required on the part of governments, industry, energy-based enterprises, and the public working together to solve our air quality issues at the local, national, and global level.

Disease phenotyping in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: the neutrophilic endotype

Purpose of review: Despite decades of scientific attention, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) remains a major cause of both morbidity and mortality worldwide with strikingly few effective drug classes available. This may be in part because COPD is actually a syndrome composed of distinct diseases with varying pathophysiology (endotypes), and therapies have not been designed to target the causal pathological processes specific to an endotype. Recent findings: Recent work has begun to clarify the nature of these endotypes and characterize them. One promising field focuses on the central role of the neutrophil and the tripeptide matrikine proline-glycine-proline (PGP) in a subset of COPD patients. Two drugs with mechanisms of action novel to the COPD therapeutic arena (azithromycin and roflumilast) have been shown to reduce acute exacerbations of COPD. Intriguingly, recent evidence has linked both of these agents to modulation of the PGP/neutrophil pathway in concert with this exacerbation reduction, suggesting that a neutrophilic endotype is present and amenable to pharmacological targeting.

Summary: Further work characterizing COPD endotypes, including this neutrophilic endotype, will be important as we strive to understand the mechanistic roots of this disease in the hope of creating more effective therapies.

Biomass smoke exposure and chronic lung disease

Purpose of review: Approximately 3 billion people worldwide rely on coal and biomass fuel for cooking and heating. Biomass smoke exposure is associated with several chronic lung diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma-COPD overlap syndrome, usual interstitial pneumonitis, hut lung, and bronchial anthracofibrosis. Household air pollution primarily from biomass smoke is the biggest risk factor for COPD worldwide. Despite the significant burden of biomass smoke-related respiratory disease, the exposure is still underappreciated worldwide, especially in high-income countries. Recent findings: Recent literature highlights the immunoinflammatory differences between biomass smoke-related COPD and tobacco smoke-related COPD that may lead to better understanding of the differences in the clinical phenotypes between the two entities, suggests an association with the recently recognized asthma-COPD overlap syndrome, and elucidates the burden of disease in high-income countries.

Summary: The current review focuses on the association between biomass smoke and common chronic respiratory diseases, discuss differences between biomass smoke-related COPD and tobacco smoke-related COPD, highlights chronic respiratory diseases that are specific for biomass smoke exposure such as hut lung and bronchial anthracofibrosis, and discusses the known impact of beneficial interventions.

Lung volume reduction of pulmonary emphysema: the radiologist task

Purpose of review: Several lung volume reduction (LVR) techniques have been increasingly evaluated in patients with advanced pulmonary emphysema, especially in the last decade. Radiologist plays a pivotal role in the characterization of parenchymal damage and, thus, assessment of eligibility criteria. This review aims to discuss the most common LVR techniques, namely LVR surgery, endobronchial valves, and coils LVR, with emphasis on the role of computed tomography (CT). Recent findings: Several trials have recently highlighted the importance of regional quantification of emphysema by computerized CT-based segmentation of hyperlucent parenchyma, which is strongly recommended for candidates to any LVR treatment. In particular, emphysema distribution pattern and fissures integrity are evaluated to tailor the choice of the most appropriate LVR technique. Furthermore, a number of CT measures have been tested for the personalization of treatment, according to imaging detected heterogeneity of parenchymal disease.

Summary: CT characterization of heterogeneous parenchymal abnormalities provides criteria for selection of the preferable treatment in each patient and improves outcome of LVR as reflected by better quality of life, higher exercise tolerance, and lower mortality.

Long-term noninvasive ventilation in patients with chronic hypercapnic respiratory failure: assisting the diaphragm, but threatening the heart?

Purpose of review: To summarize and discuss the available studies on the effects of long-term noninvasive ventilation (NIV) on cardiac function in patients with chronic hypercapnic respiratory failure. Recent findings: A total of nine studies investigated the acute and long-term effects of NIV on cardiac performance in patients with chronic hypercapnic respiratory failure. Summary: Both the application of expiratory airway pressure and (higher) inspiratory pressures may acutely decrease cardiac output during the initiation of NIV. However, the meaning of this effect in the long term is not clear. Apparently, natriuretic peptides decrease after a certain period of NIV use and heart rate variability seems to improve. Probably, a decreased cardiac output might not be disadvantageous and ref...

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