The safety and long-term effects of hypnotic medications in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have been called into question by a new study.
Higher Dose Flu Vaccines Don’t Reduce Cardiopulmonary Events
Higher dose influenza vaccines don’t appear to reduce risk of cardiopulmonary events during periods of increased, local flu activity, according to a recent study.
How Afghanistan Particulate Matter Affected Deployed Servicemembers
U.S. military personnel who served in Iraq and Afghanistan often present with deployment-related asthma-like symptoms, including distal airway obstruction.
Antifibrotic Medications Underused for IPF With Internal, External VA Care
SAN FRANCISCO — Medications approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis are significantly under-used in the VA Healthcare System, according to a new study. The recent report in the journal Chest looked at the usage...
Intervention Improves COPD Patients’ Access to Pulmonary Care
Exposure to oil well fires, burn pits and sand and dust particles as well as the use of tobacco products puts veterans at increased risk of lung diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Guided Bronchoscopy for Lung Lesion Diagnosis
Even though guided bronchoscopy is being used more and more to diagnose peripheral pulmonary lesions (PPL), questions continue about the procedure’s diagnostic yield.
Smokers With Preserved Lung Function Not Helped by Dual Bronchodilators
Long-term smokers often have serious respiratory symptoms, but without airflow obstruction. A new study questioned whether those patients should be treated with drugs used for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
More Needs to Be Done Despite VA’s ‘Vast’ Efforts to Improve COPD Outcomes
The prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among veterans is estimated to be between 8% and 19%—significantly higher than in the general population
Million Veteran Program Helps Link Genes for Severe COVID-19, Other Diseases
From the earliest days of the pandemic, it was evident that people with certain medical conditions faced an increased risk of severe COVID-19.
Paradoxical Bronchospasm Might Go Unrecognized at VHA Facilities
It is rare, but inhaled short-acting β2-adrenergic agonists can elicit paradoxical bronchospasm (PB), which may be fatal. A new study raised concerns that the condition might be unrecognized at the VHA.
What Affects COPD Patients’ Response to Home Pollution
How COPD patients respond to particulate pollution based on personal characteristics and systemic responses is not well characterized. That’s why a new study sought to find out.
Factors Affecting Which COPD Patients Complete Pulmonary Rehab
Which veterans with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease are likely to participate in and complete a pulmonary rehabilitation program?
Repeat Lung-Cancer Screening Lags for Rural Veterans
Repeat lung cancer screening lags among rural veterans and could help explain known disparities in outcomes, according to a new study.
Cytomegalovirus Linked to Airflow Limitation in Smokers
A common herpesvirus infection, cytomegalovirus can have a wide range of symptoms, from no symptoms to fever and fatigue to severe symptoms involving the eyes, brain or other internal organs. It is spread through sexual and nonsexual contact with body secretions.
What Causes Sleep Apnea in Injured Servicemembers?
Even though military servicemembers have few traditional risk factors for obstructive sleep apnea, the condition is prevalent in that cohort.
Early Reduced Airflow Can Predict Later COPD Diagnosis
Can identification of early airflow abnormalities predict future clinically important respiratory-related outcomes, including development of COPD?
Navy Study Suggests Post COVID-19 Symptoms Can Affect Military Readiness
At 0.2% percent, the military’s current COVID-19 mortality rate is far lower than that of the general American public, which is just under 2%. But often those who contract and survive COVID-19 have to live with its long-term effects, regardless of the severity of their acute illness.
Veterans’ Diseases Presumed to Be Linked to Agent Orange Exposure
VA has recognized certain cancers and other health problems as presumptive diseases associated with exposure to Agent Orange or other herbicides during military service. Veterans and their survivors may be eligible for benefits for these diseases.
Outpatient Antibiotic Stewardship Improves at VA But Remains Ongoing Problem
VHA’s antibiotic stewardship programs implemented about eight years ago are beginning to pay off, but there is a lot of work left to do, according to new research.
Metformin Shows Promise in Treating Asthma-COPD Combination
A common diabetes drug has been shown to improve respiratory outcomes in asthma but its effects on COPD and the combination of asthma and COPD remained unknown.
Many Female VA Patients Appear to Have Undiagnosed OSA
Too many women veterans remained undiagnosed with sleep apnea, even if they were at high risk of adverse outcomes, according to a new study.
Servicemembers Affected by Toxic Exposures Need More Specialized Healthcare
Government medical agencies need to view toxic exposure as a high-priority issue deserving of specialized centers for research and monitoring.
Comorbidities Led to More Severe COVID-19 Cases Among MHS Beneficiaries
About a third of COVID-19 cases among MHS beneficiaries were diagnosed with at least one comorbidity linked to more severe infection
New Definitions for Flu-Related Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis
Patients admitted to intensive care units with influenza increasingly are being diagnosed with invasive pulmonary aspergillosis.
Serum Testosterone Inversely Associated With Asthma Prevalence
TAMPA, FL—Do testosterone levels affect asthma prevalence and lung function? A new study sought to answer that question. The report in the Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology in Practice pointed out that asthma prevalence decreases post-puberty in males,...
Deployment Doesn’t Appear to Affect Sarcoidosis in Soldiers
FORT BRAGG, NC—Based on research investigating the potential link between deployment to Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom and increases in pulmonary disease, data on conditions such as asthma and airway hyperreactivity are well established, but...
What Leads to Pulmonology Referrals for Veterans With COPD?
BOSTON—At the VA and elsewhere, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease often is managed by primary care physicians and sometimes pulmonologists, but it is not clear what factors spur consultations by pulmonary specialists. In fact, according to a report in Respiratory...
Standard Treatment for Pneumonia Usually Equal to More Powerful Antibiotics
SALT LAKE CITY—A new study is likely to change treatment patterns for veterans diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia. New research suggests that using antibiotics that target antibiotic-resistant bacteria as a first-line therapy for pneumonia appears to be unnecessary in...
Nurse Researcher Pushes Teeth-Brushing to Decrease Hospital Infections
SALEM, VA—It’s a frustrating reality of hospital life—the possibility that a patient might develop an illness under care that they did not have when they arrived. Caused by bacteria rather than a virus, hospital-acquired pneumonia is the second most common type of...
Recent Deployed Veterans Have Greater Exercise-Induced Bronchoconstriction
Small Study Looked at Those Serving in Iraq, Afghanistan EAST ORANGE, NJ—For more than 20 years, many veterans have reported respiratory issues following deployment to southwest Asia. Epidemiological studies indicate that exposure to sand, dust storms, burn pits, air...
