Beware of Storms Weather Changes May Cause Collapsed Lung
New research suggests that changes in atmospheric pressure, which often occur during storms, may be related to idiopathic spontaneous pneumothorax (ISP) or collapsed lung. During a 4-year period, French and Italian researchers studied the relationship between ISP occurrence and meteorologic conditions in Bologna, Italy. Atmospheric pressure and ambient temperature were obtained for each day of the study period, and researchers defined ISP clusters as the hospitalization of at least two people with pneumothorax within 3 days of one another. By the end of the study period, there were 294 ISP episodes, 84% of which occurred in 76 clusters. Results showed a significant association between clusters and wider differences in atmospheric pressure. Researchers also reported a significant relationship between pneumothorax and storms. This study appears in the June issue of CHEST, the peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Chest Physicians.
Does Birth Order Affect Asthma Risk?
A recent study challenges an old theory known as the hygiene hypothesis, which suggests that older children protect their younger siblings from developing asthma. To test this theory, researchers from Israel gathered and reviewed the medical records of 531,116 military draftees and assessed the prevalence of asthma in both the number of children per family and the birth order. Results showed that asthma prevalence was inversely related to the number of children in a family but only in families of four or more children. Also, birth order had no effect on asthma prevalence. Researchers concluded that these results conflict with the hygiene hypothesis. This study appears in the June issue of CHEST, the peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Chest Physicians.
New Guidelines Recommend Sildenafil for Pulmonary Hypertension
A recently issued update to the 2004 American Colle
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Contact: Deana Busche
dbusche@chestnet.org
847-498-8387
American College of Chest Physicians
11-Jun-2007