Asthmatic Person Research Articles

Percezione della malattia e aderenza al progetto terapeutico riabilitativo. Il punto di vista degli adolescenti asmatici

The difficulty of asthmatic adolescents to take care of their own health through a regular intake of drugs and the adhesion to the physiotherapic treatments, it is very well documented. Curing asthma is not automatic, since it is an emotionally intense experience, where em-barrasment, sense of powerfulness and loss of control are perceived. All the above cannot be neglected particularly in an evolutive stage which is characterized by the relationships between peers together with a need for authonomy even on beliefs and values about health. This article follows the line marked by international literature, using the same theoretical and methodological setting (symbolic interactionism and narrative interview). 10 boys and 10 girls between 14 and 18 years old, admitted to Istituto Pio XII (Misurina, BL) were enrolled in the study. The interviews allowed the researchers to develop a theory based on the subjects’ self perceptions. The stories collected were about: 1) Identity building of an asthmatic person; 2) perception of the different daily lifestyle compared to persons of the same age; 3) Perception of friends and parents support; 4) Perception of the relationship with health professional; 5) Emotional impact (both happy and potentially traumatic experiences); 6) Therapy adherence. Having asthma is a stressful experience, particularly about the limitations on social life and the shame connected with it. Adolescents experience frustrations when they try to conquer their own authonomy by getting rid of what they perceive as an excessive parental control, so they carry out prejudicial behaviours (e.g. smoking) using their illness management as a favored battlefield. Health professionals are experienced as aloof and unsympathetic. The passage from therapeutic adherence to therapeutic agreement seems to be essential to promote rehabilitation projects in adolescents.

Health Diagnosis and Disease Detection Using An Electronic Nose

In this modern era, it is most obvious thing to maintain the health as well as monitoring it with concerned physician and experts. Since the conventional procedure is costly and time consuming, to overcome these limitations, an Electronic Nose system has been developed for various purposes. An electronic nose is a portable handmade system with different sensor arrays for identification of gases in exhaled breath. The aim is strongly concerned with the exhaled breath analysis for different disease and health monitoring. The diseases discussed in this paper are asthma and bronchitis along with identification of breath sample as smoker/nonsmoker as well as to identify the breath sample even if it doesn't have any of the above mentioned disease. Four different sensors have been used to identify the disease and detection. The Sensors used are NOB4, COB4, MQ7 and PSR-11-917-M Oxygen Sensor. Breath Samples are collected using Tedlar bags. The samples of asthmatic person, non asthmatic person, bronchial person, smoker as well as non smoker person have been collected and identified the level of their disease as well as the health condition. At last significance of particular disease has been discussed and correlated it with each other.

Asthma knowledge among primary and secondary school teachers in rural northern Costa Rica

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways. It is very common among children and is a major cause for emergency room visits and missed school days. Costa Rica has one of the highestrates of childhood asthma in the world; so it is important for teachers to know how to prevent and treat asthma attacks in the classroom. Since schools in rural Costa Rica had not yet been studied, teachers were sampled from six schools in Venecia and Aguas Zarcas, San Carlos. During March and April 2014, 185 asthma questionnaires were collected.Among these teachers, 51% were aware of asthmatic students in their classes, and 19% recalled witnessing an asthma attack in the classroom. Interest in asthma training was high among 85% of the teachers,and the preferred format was a lecture or workshop. Greater asthma knowledge was significantly related to living with an asthmatic person (p=0,014), but not with being asthmatic, having asthmatic students,witnessing an asthma attack in the classroom, sex, age, education level, or teaching experience. Greater interest in asthma training was related to awareness of asthmatic students (p=0,031), prior experience with an asthma attack in the classroom (p=0,033), and greater asthma knowledge (p=0,022). Primary school teachers were more likely to be aware of asthmatic students in their classes compared to secondary school teachers (p=0,002)

EPA-1194 – Comparative study of static and dynamic family representations in psychosomatic families. case study

A well-functioning family system is able to change over time, while a dysfunctional one rigidly insists on its behaviour patterns well accustomed to. Thus all the family members become essential parts of this unfavourable condition. The aim of our study was to explore the psychosomatic family members’ static and dynamic mental representations about their family. There were altogether three families in our study, one of them with an asthmatic person and the other one with a young adult with panic disorder. The members of the third family were healthy people. Gehring's (2010) Family System Test (FAST) - a figural technique - was used to explore the individuals’ family representations. Later the dynamic form of the test was also applied. The results showed more rigid family structure in the cases of the psychosomatic patients. While the family members’ static representations were more comparable in the typical and ideal situations in the family with an asthmatic young person, the panic patient's typical and conflict family representations demonstrated more similarity. In addition, this representation rather reflected the healthy family members’ mental representation in the family with a panic patient, while in the other case the joint representation of the family members was influenced by the asthmatic young man to a greater extent. The observed types of the family structure confirm the different static representations and cognitive processes by the family members, which raises the significance of the effect of the analysed psychosomatic disorders on the given family system.

A Fatality Following Ingestion of the Designer Drug Meta‐Chlorophenylpiperazine (mCPP) in an Asthmatic—HPLC‐MS/MS Detection in Biofluids and Hair

A 20-year-old man, a cocaine addict and regular ecstasy user, with a medical history of allergic asthma died after ingesting half a tablet earlier the same day. The white tablet, stamped with a "smiling sun" logo looked very much like an ecstasy tablet and was sold as such. He experienced a severe asthma attack just after ingesting the half tablet and it evolved over the next few hours into fatal cardiorespiratory arrest. Biological samples, taken after embalming, were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). Analysis revealed meta-chlorophenylpiperazine (mCPP) in concentrations of 45.8 mg in a similar tablet obtained later from the drug dealer, 5.1 ng/mL in the bile, 0.3 ng/g in the liver, 15.0 ng/mL in the urine, and its absence in a hair sample (<0.02 ng/mg), which indicated he was not a regular user (whereas strong concentrations of MDMA and cocaine were found in the hair). Interrogated by the police after his arrest, the dealer said that he had sold the victim and for the very first time two tablets with the same "smiling sun" logo. The tablet used for analysis was from the same brand as the one ingested by the victim. The autopsy excluded other causes of death, while the histological analyses showed a large number of polynuclear eosinophils in the bronchial walls, confirming the asthmatic pathology. None of the other organs examined (larynx, liver, heart, adrenal glands, and kidneys) showed any distinctive signs, and in particular no inflammatory infiltrate. The death was the result of an asthma attack in an asthmatic person, violently decompensated following ingestion of approximately 20 mg of mCPP.

An assessment of community pharmacists' responses to hypothetical medical emergency situations

To investigate community pharmacists' proposed actions in hypothetical medical emergency situations in South-East Queensland, Australia. A survey was posted to 151 Gold Coast and Toowoomba community pharmacies in October 2009. Pharmacists were asked to document their opinions regarding the pharmacist's role in medical emergencies and to respond to statements associated with two hypothetical medical emergency situations: an anaphylaxis and an asthma attack. Forty-five pharmacists responded to the survey (29.8%). In response to a hypothetical situation involving an asthma attack, 41 pharmacists (91.1%) agreed that they would assist the asthmatic person to administer salbutamol through a spacer, with 28 pharmacists (62.2%) confident in treating an asthma attack in the pharmacy. In comparison, only 21 pharmacists (21/38; 55.3%) agreed to administer an adrenaline auto-injector (Epi-Pen) for a child experiencing an anaphylaxis, with nine respondents (9/38; 23.7%) indicating that they would ask the mother for directions in a situation where they were unsure how to administer it. There were comments questioning whether indemnity insurance covers pharmacists for medicine administration, and 12 pharmacists (12/38; 31.6%) indicated that if they were unsure about insurance cover they would ask the mother to administer the adrenaline. Pharmacists' responses to administering medications in hypothetical medical emergencies were variable. The cause of this variation is multi-factorial and likely to include familiarity with the medication, its safety profile and uncertainty about the pharmacist's role and responsibilities in these situations. Further clarification, training and guidelines are needed in order to address this.

Educating the patient: skills needed to nursing at the crossroads of care and pedagogy

The educational team interrogated itself concerning its pedagogical competence within the framework of its educational activity for asthmatics: how does the care provider become a learning facilitator for the asthmatic person? Among the possible responses, there were two aspects which appeared essential: understanding the patient's learning logic and taking into consideration his/her representations and prior knowledge. The concrete translation of these principles primarily rests upon an educational programme truly centred on the person in question, and one which uses interactive methods, promoting the transfer of knowledge in daily life. Then the caregiver utilises previous experience and the asthmatic's representations in order to solicit a cognitive conflict, a source of learning.

New insights from lung function.

Asthma is a disease that is, in large part, defined by abnormalities of pulmonary function. Failure of any new treatment modality to improve objective measures of lung function suggests a limited usefulness of such new therapies. The clear dissociation between inflammation and airways responsiveness indicates the latter is not solely dependent on the former. Recent long-term treatment trials suggest that monitoring the degree of airways responsiveness, and returning responsiveness toward a normal value should be an obtainable goal of therapy. The effects of large inhalations and loss of lung volume dependence suggest that linkage between the airways and lung parenchyma are a key to maintenance of airway patency. Measurement of lung function remains the most practical means for the assessment of permanent changes in lung structure. New developments in monitoring lung function, especially using forced oscillation approaches, show particular promise in assessing the lung function of the asthmatic person.

The economic cost of asthma in Singapore.

Asthma is a common chronic disorder. In Singapore, it is estimated that 140,000 individuals have current asthma and more than 100 individuals die of this disease annually. This study estimates the economic cost of asthma, both direct and indirect, to the patient and community. Direct cost estimates were based on all levels of medical care, which included inpatient care, emergency room visits, specialist outpatient and primary healthcare, and medication costs. Indirect costs were estimated from cost of time lost by patients and their families attending to medical needs and the loss of productivity due to absenteeism. These estimates were calculated to the 1992/93 US dollar. The total cost of asthma in Singapore was estimated to be US $33.93 million per annum. This was made up of US $17.22 million in direct costs and US $16.71 million in indirect costs. Inpatient hospitalisation accounted for the largest proportion of direct medical expenditure, approximately US $8.55 million. The loss of productivity from acute asthma accounted for the largest proportion of the indirect costs at US $12.70 million. The cost estimates did not include premature death due to disease. These estimates represent approximately US $238 per asthmatic person per year or US $11.90 per person per year. This study shows that the economic cost of asthma is also considerable in populations outside the Western hemisphere, and justifies the need for a concerted effort to reduce asthma morbidity worldwide.

Heterogeneous effects of histamine on proliferation of lung- and blood-derived T-cell clones from healthy and asthmatic persons.

We have studied the effects of histamine on the proliferation and the intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) levels of T-lymphocyte clones (TLC) generated from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) or peripheral blood (PB) from healthy and asthmatic persons. TLC from either compartment and from both groups of donors were heterogeneous in their response to histamine. In BALF-derived TLC, three types of responses were observed: histamine inhibited, stimulated, or did not modulate the anti-CD3-induced proliferation. Histamine directly and dose dependently inhibited the anti-CD3-induced proliferation of six (two asthmatic) of 12 CD4+ BALF TLC, stimulated two BALF TLC (both nonasthmatic), and did not modulate the proliferation of four BALF TLC. The maximal inhibition was 70%, the maximal stimulation 200%, both at 10(-3) M histamine. The stimulation of proliferation was associated with increased interleukin-2 (IL-2) production, whereas the inhibition of proliferation was associated with decreased IL-2 production and downregulation of IL-2 receptor expression. The inhibitory effects could be partly reversed by H2-receptor antagonists and could be mimicked by an H2-receptor agonist. In contrast, the stimulatory effect was not reversed or mimicked by H1 or H2 antagonists or agonists. The majority of CD4+ TLC responded to histamine with a rise in the intracellular cAMP levels. A rise in cAMP, however, was often but not always associated with an inhibition of proliferation. In addition, stimulation of proliferation occurred in the absence of a rise in cAMP. We compared cAMP rises in panels of TLC obtained with high cloning efficiencies from the PB from a healthy person and from an asthmatic person.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The cost of asthma in New South Wales

To determine the economic cost of asthma to the New South Wales community. Direct costs (both health-care and non-health-care) plus indirect costs (loss of productivity) were estimated from various sources to assess retrospectively the dollar costs of asthma. Intangible costs (such as quality of life) were not included. Estimates of costs were made at all levels of medical care of asthma patients, including inpatient and outpatient hospitalisations, emergency department visits, and visits to general practitioners and specialist physicians, plus costs of pharmaceuticals, nebulisers and home peak-flow monitoring devices. The cost of time lost by the patient attending for medical visits and loss of productivity due to absence from employment as a result of asthma were also included. The total cost of asthma in New South Wales was $209 million in 1989. This was made up of $142 million in direct health-care costs, $19 million in direct non-health-care costs and $48 million in indirect costs. Although we believe that our estimate is an underestimate of the true dollar cost of this disease to the community, it represents $769 per asthmatic person per year, assuming a current prevalence rate for asthma in New South Wales of 6%. The cost effectiveness of any new treatment of asthma should be estimated to ensure that the economic cost to the community does not rise unnecessarily.

Physiological assessment of inflammation in the peripheral lung of asthmatic patients

Even the asymptomatic asthmatic person with normal lung function may have peripheral airway obstruction and inflammation along with hyperresponsiveness to nonspecific challenges. The airway caliber change induced immediately following a deep inhalation (DI) appears to relate to the mechanism (inflammation vs. smooth muscle constriction) and site (peripheral vs. more central) of obstruction and the degree of hyperresponsiveness. Data are presented and reviewed that support the notion that relative hysteresis of parenchyma (including peripheral airways and alveolar ducts) and airways (more centrally located, conducting airways) can explain the magnitude and sign of airway caliber change that follow a DI in asthmatic subjects.

BACTERIAL ALLERGY IN RELATION TO ASTHMA

BECAUSE of an increasing interest in the management of patients having allergic respiratory symptoms, it might be of value to review the observations made on a group of persons with this rather common disability and to outline a method of treatment which has given satisfactory results. This group of 100 patients included 36 adults and 16 children, all of whom were known to be asthmatic, and 48 children with allergic bronchitis or allergic rhinitis or both; the last-named group could doubtless be classified as preasthmatic. Gray and Albert 1 designated as preasthmatic symptoms nasal congestion, sneezing, rhinorrhea, cough and dyspnea and emphasized the importance of taking every possible precaution with a potentially asthmatic person to prevent the first actual asthmatic attack. Early in our study of infections of the pharynx, especially the nasopharynx, my associates and I were impressed with the number of allergic patients who gave a history of infections

XLIII. An account of what appeared on opening the body of an asthmatic person

Gentlemen, As nothing tends more to illustrate the nature of uncommon diseases than the examination of morbid bodies after death, I take the liberty of communicating the following history. Mr. W. aged twenty eight, conculted me at the latter end of November 1763. He had for about two months laboured under great difficulty of respiration, for which he had taken great variety of medicines without any relief. He had been largely bled, which, without helping his respiration, had greatly depressed and weakened him. The air of the country, where he had resided some time, made not the least alteration in his complaint, which daily grew worse.

IV. A letter to the President of the Royal Society, from Frank Nicholls, M. D. F. R. S. giving an account of a polypus, resembling a branch of the pulmonary vein, coughed up by an asthmatic person.

Sir, &lt;italic&gt;Nicholas Tulpius&lt;/italic&gt;, in the 7th Observation of his second Book, presents us with the Case of Man Who, with a large Effusion of Blood, threw up, by coughing, two Branches of the &lt;italic&gt;Pulmonary Vein&lt;/italic&gt;, six Inches long, with their several Ramifications, freed from the &lt;italic&gt;Trachæa&lt;/italic&gt; and Substance of the Lungs, as if diffected by the most accurate Anatomist.