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Chronic rhinosinusitis in Europe - an underestimated disease. A GA(2) LEN study.

Chronic rhinosinusitis in Europe - an underestimated disease. A GA(2) LEN study.

Allergy. 2011 May 24;

Authors: Hastan D, Fokkens WJ, Bachert C, Newson RB, Bislimovska J, Bockelbrink A, Bousquet PJ, Brozek G, Bruno A, Dahlén SE, Forsberg B, Gunnbjörnsdóttir M, Kasper L, Krämer U, Kowalski ML, Lange B, Lundbäck B, Salagean E, Todo-Bom A, Tomassen P, Toskala E, van Drunen CM, Bousquet J, Zuberbier T, Jarvis D, Burney P

To cite this article: Hastan D, Fokkens WJ, Bachert C, Newson RB, Bislimovska J, Bockelbrink A, Bousquet PJ, Brozek G, Bruno A, Dahlén SE, Forsberg B, Gunnbjörnsdóttir M, Kasper L, Krämer U, Kowalski ML, Lange B, Lundbäck B, Salagean E, Todo-Bom A, Tomassen P, Toskala E, van Drunen CM, Bousquet J, Zuberbier T, Jarvis D, Burney P. Chronic rhinosinusitis in Europe - an underestimated disease. A GA(2) LEN study. Allergy 2011; DOI: 10.1111/j.1398-9995.2011.02646.x. ABSTRACT: Background:  Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a common health problem, with significant medical costs and impact on general health. Even so, prevalence figures for Europe are unavailable. In this study, conducted by the GA(2) LEN network of excellence, the European Position Paper on Rhinosinusitis and nasal Polyps (EP(3) OS) diagnostic criteria are applied to estimate variation in the prevalence of Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) for Europe. Method:  A postal questionnaire was sent to a random sample of adults aged 15-75 years in 19 centres in Europe. Participants reported symptoms of CRS, and doctor diagnosed CRS, allergic rhinitis, age, gender and smoking history. Definition of CRS was based on the EP(3) OS diagnostic criteria: the presence of more than two of the symptoms: (i) nasal blockage, (ii) nasal discharge, (iii) facial pain/pressure or (iv) reduction in sense of smell, for >12 weeks in the past year - with at least one symptom being nasal blockage or discharge. Results:  Information was obtained from 57 128 responders living in 19 centres in 12 countries. The overall prevalence of CRS by EP(3) OS criteria was 10.9% (range 6.9-27.1). CRS was more common in smokers than in nonsmokers (OR 1.7: 95% CI 1.6-1.9). The prevalence of self-reported physician-diagnosed CRS within centres was highly correlated with the prevalence of EP(3) OS-diagnosed CRS. Conclusion:  This is the first European international multicentre prevalence study of CRS. In this multicentre survey of adults in Europe, about one in ten participants had CRS with marked geographical variation. Smoking was associated with having CRS in all parts of Europe.

PMID: 21605125 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Safety of bevacizumab 7.5 mg/kg infusion over 10 minutes in NSCLC patients.

Safety of bevacizumab 7.5 mg/kg infusion over 10 minutes in NSCLC patients.

Invest New Drugs. 2011 May 26;

Authors: Mir O, Alexandre J, Coriat R, Ropert S, Boudou-Rouquette P, Bui T, Chapron J, Durand JP, Dusser D, Goldwasser F

Background Bevacizumab is a humanized IgG1 monoclonal antibody against VEGF. Because infusion-related hypersensitivity reactions (HSRs) are a concern with monoclonal antibodies, initial phase 1 trials used a 90-, 60-, then 30-min initial infusion sequence. We evaluated the impact of a shortened bevacizumab infusion (10 min) on toxicity in nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. Patients and methods Consecutive patients with stage IV NSCLC eligible for anti-VEGF therapy received a platinum doublet plus bevacizumab 7.5 mg/kg infused over 10 min, every 3 weeks, in the outpatient setting. Blood pressure was monitored at home twice daily, and other toxicities (HSRs and proteinuria) were monitored at each treatment administration. Results Bevacizumab was given as a 10 min infusion in 55 patients (group A), and using the standard sequence in another 36 patients (group B). Hypertension (grade ≥2) was observed in 18/55 (32.7%) patients in group A and 13/36 (38.9%) patients in group B (p = 0.77). Similarly, no difference was seen regarding the incidence of grade ≥2 proteinuria (12.7% vs. 19.4%, p = 0.39), arterial thrombo-embolic events (0 in each group) or venous thromboembolic events (1.8% vs. 8.3%, p = 0.29). Conclusions Our data suggest that bevacizumab 7.5 mg/kg can be safely infused over 10 min in unselected NSCLC patients despite their cardio-vascular and respiratory comorbidities, saving time for both patients and caregivers.

PMID: 21614447 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

A crossover study of short burst oxygen therapy (SBOT) for the relief of exercise-induced breathlessness in severe COPD

Background: Previous small studies suggested SBOT may be ineffective in relieving breathlessness after exercise in COPD. Methods: 34 COPD patients with FEV1 <40% predicted and resting oxygen saturation greater than or equal to 93% undertook an exercise step test 4 times. After exercise, patients were given 4 l/min of oxygen from a simple face mask, 4 l/min air from a face mask (single blind), air from a fan or no intervention. Results: Average oxygen saturation fell from 95.0% at rest to 91.3% after exercise. The mean time to subjective recovery was 3.3 minutes with no difference between treatments. The mean Borg breathlessness score was 1.5/10 at rest, rising to 5.1/10 at the end of exercise (No breathlessness =0, worst possible breathlessness = 10). Oxygen therapy had no discernable effect on Borg scores even for 14 patients who desaturated below 90%. 15 patients had no preferred treatment, 7 preferred oxygen, 6 preferred the fan, 3 preferred air via a mask and 3 preferred room air. Conclusions: This study provides no support for the idea that COPD patients who are not hypoxaemic at rest derive noticeable benefit from oxygen therapy after exercise. Use of air from a mask or from a fan had no apparent physiological or placebo effect.

Chronic virus infections supress atopy but not asthma in a set of children from a large Latin American city: A cross-section study

Background: The prevalence of allergic diseases has increased over recent decades in affluent countries, but remains low in rural populations and some non-affluent countries. An explanation for these trends is that increased exposure to infections may provide protection against the development of allergy. In this work we investigated the association between exposure to viral infections in children living in urban Brazil and the prevalence of atopy and asthma. Methods: School age children living in poor neighborhoods in the city of Salvador were studied. Data on asthma symptoms and relevant risk factors were obtained by questionnaire. Skin prick tests (SPTs) were performed to seven aeroallergens, and specific IgE was measured to four of these. Viral infections were determined by the presence of specific IgG in serum to Herpes simplex (HSV), Herpes zoster (HZV), Epstein-Barr (EBV), and Hepatitis A (HAV) viruses. Results: A total of 644 (49.7%) children had at least one allergen-specific IgE> 0.35 kU/L and 489 (37.7%) had specific IgE> 0.70 kU/L. A total of 391 (30.2%) children were skin test positive (SPT+), and 295 (22.8%) children were asthmatic. The seroprevalence of viral infections was 88.9% for EBV, 55.4% for HSV, 45.5% for VZV and 17.5% for HAV. Negative associations were observed between SPT+ and HSV (OR = 0.64, CI = 0.51, 0.82) and EBV (OR = 0.63, CI = 0.44, 0.89) infections, but no associations were seen between viral infections and the presence of allergen-specific IgE or asthma. Conclusion: These data do not support previous data showing a protective effect of HAV against atopy, but did show inverse associations between SPT+ (but not specific IgE+) and infections with HSV and EBV. These findings suggest that different viral infections may protect against SPT+ in different settings and may indicate an immunoregulatory role of such infections on immediate hypersensitivity responses. The data provide no support for a protective effect of viral infections against asthma in this population.

Fluticasone/formoterol combination therapy is as effective as fluticasone/salmeterol in the treatment of asthma, but has a more rapid onset of action: an open-label, randomized study

Background: The inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) fluticasone propionate (fluticasone) and the long-acting beta2-agonist (LABA) formoterol fumarate (formoterol) are being made available as a combination product (fluticasone/formoterol, flutiform(R)) in a single aerosol inhaler. This 12-week, open-label, randomized, active-controlled, parallel-group, multicentre, phase 3 study compared the efficacy and safety of fluticasone/formoterol with the commercially available combination product fluticasone/salmeterol. Methods: Patients aged [greater than or equal to] 18 years (N = 202) with mild-to-moderate-severe, persistent asthma for [greater than or equal to] 6 months prior to screening were included in the study. After a screening phase (4-10 days), eligible patients were randomized 1:1 to receive fluticasone/formoterol or fluticasone/salmeterol during the 12 week treatment period. The primary objective was to demonstrate non-inferiority of fluticasone/formoterol versus fluticasone/salmeterol, measured by pre-dose forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1), at week 12. Results: Fluticasone/formoterol was comparable to fluticasone/salmeterol for the primary efficacy endpoint, mean pre-dose FEV1 at week 12. The new combination was also comparable to fluticasone/salmeterol for change from baseline to week 12 in pre-dose FEV1, change from pre-dose FEV1 at baseline to 2-hour post-dose FEV1 at week 12 and discontinuations due to lack of efficacy. Importantly, fluticasone/formoterol was superior to fluticasone/salmeterol in time to onset of action throughout the duration of the study. The two treatments demonstrated similar results for various other secondary efficacy parameters, including other lung function tests, patient-reported outcomes, rescue medication use, asthma exacerbations and Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire scores. Fluticasone/formoterol was well tolerated and had a good safety profile that was similar to fluticasone/salmeterol. Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that fluticasone/formoterol is as effective as fluticasone/salmeterol, and has a more rapid onset of action, reflecting the faster bronchodilatory effects of formoterol compared with those of salmeterol. If patients perceive the benefits of therapy with fluticasone/formoterol more rapidly than with fluticasone/salmeterol, this could have a positive impact on preference and adherence.Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT00476073

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