Chronic Recurrent Respiratory Infections Research Articles

Diagnostics and Management of Male Infertility in Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia.

Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD), a disease caused by the malfunction of motile cilia, manifests mainly with chronic recurrent respiratory infections. In men, PCD is also often associated with infertility due to immotile sperm. Since causative mutations for PCD were identified in over 50 genes, the role of these genes in sperm development should be investigated in order to understand the effect of PCD mutations on male fertility. Previous studies showed that different dynein arm heavy chains are present in respiratory cilia and sperm flagellum, which may partially explain the variable effects of mutations on airways and fertility. Furthermore, recent studies showed that male reproductive tract motile cilia may play an important part in sperm maturation and transport. In some PCD patients, extremely low sperm counts were reported, which may be due to motile cilia dysfunction in the reproductive tract rather than problems with sperm development. However, the exact roles of PCD genes in male fertility require additional studies, as do the treatment options. In this review, we discuss the diagnostic and treatment options for men with PCD based on the current knowledge.

A Case of Common Variable Immune Deficiency Presenting as Recurrent Pneumococcal Pneumonia

Common variable immune deficiency (CVID) is the most common primary immune deficiency, which is manifested as chronic recurrent respiratory infections and hypoglobulinemia. CVID usually presents in the second or third decade of life. A 33-year-old woman was admitted with recurrent pneumococcal pneumonia with bacteremia and had very low levels of serum immunoglobulin G, M and A. This case emphasized a high index of suspiciousness for diagnosis of CVID in a mid-adulthood patient presenting with recurrent pneumonia with hypoglobulinemia.

Airway Obstruction in Adults With Recurrent Respiratory Infections and IgG Deficiency

In 42 adults with recurrent respiratory infections (RRI) and common variable immunodeficiency or immunoglobulin G (IgG) subclass deficiency, the results of pulmonary function tests were related to factors apt to produce airway obstruction: serum concentration of IgG and IgG subclasses, various features of acute RRI (number/year, time from onset to diagnosis, episodes of pneumonia, etc) and type of chronic lung disease (smoking and nonsmoking related chronic bronchitis, episodic wheezing, and bronchiectasis). Compared with nonsmokers, usually less than 40 years of age, the patients above 40 had smoking-related chronic bronchitis and had obstruction (%FEV1/forced vital capacity [FVC] 55.3 +/- 8.1 vs 80.1 +/- 4.5), hyperinflation (residual volume 182.7 +/- 22.7 percent vs 109.7 +/- 8.8 percent of pred) hypoxemia (66.6 +/- 5.8 vs 83.4 +/- 4.2 mm Hg) and impaired carbon monoxide transfer (65.5 +/- 9.1 percent vs 93.3 +/- 5.8 percent). The features of acute or chronic RRI, the time from onset to diagnosis (< 10 yr in the entire group), the type of IgG deficiency or the serum concentration of the deficient protein did not correlate with substantial obstruction (FEV1/FVC < 70%). In conclusion, in adults with IgG deficiency and RRI for less than 10 yr, smokers with chronic bronchitis rather than nonsmokers develop substantial airway obstruction.