Asthma Recommendations Currently, two long-acting beta2-adrenergic agonists (LABAs) have FDA marketing approval for the treatment of asthma – salmeterol (the active ingredient in Serevent Diskus and Advair) and formoterol (the active agent in Foradil and Symbicort). Each of these agents works by relaxing smooth muscle in the respiratory tract, allow- ing you to breathe easier…
Traveling News Portable Oxygen Concentrator (POC) Recall Greg from Sequal Technologies tells us the company sent out a “Medical Device Correction” letter to dealers who had sold certain Eclipse One portable oxygen concentrators. A connection between the battery and internal circuit board could possibly cause the unit to alarm and shut down. To find out…
Drive4COPD Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is sponsoring the DRIVE4COPD campaign to raise awareness of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. Hollywood, sports and music celebrities will drive 6,000 miles across our country to identify the millions of people with COPD who may not know they have it. (An estimated half of the 24 million people in the…
Fibrosis File Pirfenidone Approval News Pirfenidone is a drug that has been developed by InterMune, Inc. to treat patients suffering from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). Afflicting up to 200,000 people in the U.S., IPF scars the lungs, causing the tissue to thicken and be less able to move oxygen into the blood. At the end…
CDC Revises Flu Therapy Guidelines The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its recommendations on antiviral treatment. The drugs of choice for treatment of 2009 H1N1 influenza and influenza-like illness in both children and adults are the oral drugs, oseltamivir or Tamiflu and zanamivir or Relenza and the intravenous medication, Peramivir, currently being evaluated…
Calling Dr. Bauer Dear Dr. Bauer, I have COPD and haven’t flown in a long time. How do I know if I need extra oxygen while I am in the air? …
Dietary Fiber May Lower Lung Disease Risk People who get enough fiber in their diets, particularly from whole grains, may have a lower risk of developing chronic lung disease than those who eat few high-fiber foods, a new study in the American Journal of Epidemiology finds. Fiber has both antioxidant and anti- inflammatory properties. The…
2010: The Year of the Lung The Year of the Lung is being organized by the Forum of International Respiratory Societies which includes the Asociaion Latinoamericana del Thorax, the American College of Chest Physicians, the American Thoracic Society, the Asia Pacific Society of Respirology, the European Respiratory Society, the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung…
Breathing and the Weather: Hot, Cold and In Between! The recent frigid temperatures throughout the coun- try have caused many to stay inside to protect their lungs. Blasts of cold air may narrow your airways and put them into spasm. (Dry, hot air may do the same thing!) Now that Spring is finally in sight,…
Go Get ’Em, Candice! Respiratory Therapist Candice “Bergen” Newberry is not celebrating her birthday, but had a night out before being deployed to Afghanistan – again. She and a handful of allied health professionals will be involved in establishing a hospital near the front lines to provide care for our troops. We are very proud…