Correlation Of Symptom Score Research Articles

Correlation of Symptom Scores, Nasal Airflow, and Nasal Resistance in Dust Mite Sensitized Allergic Rhinitis Children

Correlation of Symptom Scores, Nasal Airflow, and Nasal Resistance in Dust Mite Sensitized Allergic Rhinitis Children

The correlation of symptoms, pulmonary function tests and exercise testing with high-resolution computed tomography in patients with idiopathic interstitial pneumonia in a tertiary care hospital in South India

Context:For the follow-up of patients with idiopathic interstitial pneumonias (IIP), it is unclear which parameters of pulmonary function tests (PFT) and exercise testing would correlate best with high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT)..Aim:To find out the correlation of symptom scores, PFTs and exercise testing with HRCT scoring in patients diagnosed as idiopathic interstitial pneumonia.Settings and Design:Cross-sectional study done in pulmonary medicine outpatients department of a tertiary care hospital in South India.Materials and Methods:Consecutive patients who were diagnosed as IIP by a standard algorithm were included into the study. Cough and dyspnea were graded for severity and duration. Pulmonary function tests and exercise testing parameters were noted. HRCT was scored based on an alveolar score, an interstitial score and a total score. The HRCT was correlated with each of the clinical and physiologic parameters. Pearson's/Spearman's correlation coefficient was used for the correlation of symptoms and parameters of ABG, PFT and 6MWT with the HRCT scores.Results:A total of 94 patients were included in the study. Cough and dyspnea severity (r = 0.336 and 0.299), FVC (r = −0.48), TLC (r = −0.439) and DLCO and distance saturation product (DSP) (r = −0.368) and lowest saturation (r = −0.324) had significant correlation with total HRCT score. Among these, DLCO, particularly DLCO corrected % of predicted, correlated best with HRCT score (r = −0.721)..Conclusion:Symptoms, PFT and exercise testing had good correlation with HRCT. DLCO corrected % of predicted correlated best with HRCT.

Exhaled Breath Biomarkers in Asthmatic Children

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways which affects about 10-25% of children in Western countries. Monitoring of inflammation is considered an important tool in the diagnosis and follow-up of asthma, including assessment of severity and response to treatment. Bronchial biopsy specimens and bronchoalveolar lavage are reliable ways to assess airway inflammation. However, such invasive procedures are not feasible for repetitive measurements. In clinical practice, correlation of symptom scores and measurement of lung function with airway inflammation may be poor. Bronchial hyperresponsiveness to metacholine and induced sputum are time-consuming, difficult to perform before adolescence and can not be measured serially. Therefore, the greatest interest has recently been directed towards alternative approaches to determine markers involved in the inflammatory reaction. In childhood, such approaches must be non-invasive, reproducible and easy to perform. Furthermore, the inflammatory markers should accurately measure not only the degree of inflammation but also changes depending upon treatment or allergen exposure. Recently, the measurements of inflammatory markers in both exhaled breath and condensate have emerged as a possible non invasive method in the assessment of airway inflammation.