Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Editorial (invited)Pages 1-2DOI 10.1007/s11325-011-0598-6Authors Joachim T. Maurer, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Sleep Disorders Center, University Medicine Mannheim, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Ruprecht-Karls-University Heidelberg, 68135 Mannheim, Germany Journal Sleep and BreathingOnline ISSN 1522-1709Print ISSN 1520-9512 (Source: Sleep and Breathing)

Children with severe therapy-resistant asthma (STRA) may have poorer lung function and worse symptoms compared to children with moderate asthma, due to lower levels of vitamin D in their blood, according to researchers in London. Lower levels of vitamin D may cause structural changes in the airway muscles of children with STRA, making breathing more difficult. The study provides important new evidence for possible treatments for the condition... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Treatment with the calcium-sensitizing drug levosimendan may be effective in improving muscle function in patients with respiratory muscle weakness, which often accompanies chronic diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and congestive heart failure, according to researchers in the Netherlands, who studied the effects of the drug on healthy volunteers. The drug, which is normally prescribed in patients with acute heart failure,increases the sensitivity of muscle tissue to calcium, improving the muscle'sability to contract... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Conclusions and Clinical RelevanceOur data suggest that the association between antibiotics and asthma is subject to either reverse causation or confounding by indication due to respiratory tract infections. This implies that careful consideration is required as to whether or not symptoms from the respiratory tract in early childhood should be treated with antibiotics or asthma medication. (Source: Clinical and Experimental Allergy)