OM-85 and Respiratory Symptoms in Korean COPD: A Multicenter Observational Study.

Background: Although OM-85 may lessen respiratory symptoms and reduce acute exacerbations in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), its overall effectiveness remains incompletely proven.

Methods: This prospective, observational, single-arm study was conducted at four university hospitals in South Korea from June 2022 to December 2023. Adults with spirometry-confirmed COPD who were prescribed OM-85 were enrolled and followed for six months (3-months treatment, 3-months observation).

Diagnostic approach for incidental pulmonary nodules.

Lung cancer remains a leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide and is often diagnosed at an advanced stage, with poor survival outcomes. Early detection and appropriate management of incidental pulmonary nodules, frequently identified through low-dose computed tomography screening, are critical for improving prognosis and reducing lung cancer mortality. Established guidelines, including those of the Fleischner Society and American College of Radiology, provide structured recommendations for risk assessment, surveillance, and intervention.

Risk Factors of FEV₁/FVC Decline in COPD Patients.

Background: Factors influencing the decline in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV₁)/forced vital capacity (FVC) for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) progression remain uncertain. We aimed to identify risk factors associated with rapid FEV₁/FVC decline in patients with COPD.

Methods: This multi-center observational study was conducted from January 2012 to December 2022.

Adherence to Pharmacological Management Guidelines for Stable Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease.

Background: This study evaluated adherence to the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) and Korean guidelines in the prescription patterns of respiratory specialists for stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) management.

Methods: Data were collected on medications from 2011 to 2022 using the Korea COPD Subtype Study (KOCOSS) cohort. Patients were divided into two groups: those registered before and after 2019, and we analyzed the percentage of patients meeting the recommended treatment criteria established by each guideline.

Implications of Global Lung Function Initiative Spirometry Reference Equations in Northeast Asian Patients With COPD.

Background: Accurate spirometry interpretation is critical in the diagnosis and management of COPD. With increasing efforts for a unified approach by the Global Lung Function Initiative (GLI), this study evaluated the application of race-specific 2012 GLI and race-neutral 2022 GLI reference equations compared with Choi's reference equations, which are derived and widely used in South Korea, for spirometry interpretation in Northeast Asian patients with COPD.

Research Question: What are the effects of applying race-specific 2012 GLI, race-neutral 2022 GLI, and Choi's reference equations on the diagnosis, severity grade, and clinical outcome associations of COPD?

Study Design And Methods: Serial spirometry data from the Korea COPD Subgroup Study (KOCOSS) consisting of 3,477 patients were used for reanalysis using 2012 GLI, 2022 GLI, and Choi's reference equations.

Components of the Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Assessment Test Associated with the Exacerbation of Severe Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients.

Introduction: The chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) Assessment Test (CAT) score is widely used for evaluating the health status of patients diagnosed with COPD. The aim of this study was to identify which components of the CAT are associated with exacerbations in severe COPD patients.

Methods: Using data from the Korean COPD Subgroup Study (KOCOSS), we identified 3,440 COPD patients, among which 1,027 patients are classified as having severe COPD based on spirometry results.

Development of a daily predictive model for the exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Acute exacerbation (AE) of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) compromises health status; it increases disease progression and the risk of future exacerbations. We aimed to develop a model to predict COPD exacerbation. We merged the Korean COPD subgroup study (KOCOSS) dataset with nationwide medical claims data, information regarding weather, air pollution, and epidemic respiratory virus data.

Clinical aspects of severe cutaneous adverse reactions caused by beta-lactam antibiotics: A study from the Korea SCAR registry.

Background: Although beta-lactams are 1 of the major causative agents of severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCAR), their epidemiology and clinical aspects have been poorly studied. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of SCAR caused by beta-lactams in the Korean SCAR registry.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed beta-lactam-induced SCAR cases collected from 28 tertiary university hospitals in Korea between 2010 and 2015.

Developmental endothelial locus-1 as a potential biomarker for the incidence of acute exacerbation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Background: Despite the high disease burden of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and risk of acute COPD exacerbation, few COPD biomarkers are available. As developmental endothelial locus-1 (DEL-1) has been proposed to possess beneficial effects, including anti-inflammatory effects, we hypothesized that DEL-1 could be a blood biomarker for COPD.

Objective: To elucidate the role of plasma DEL-1 as a biomarker of COPD in terms of pathogenesis and for predicting acute exacerbation.

Metabolic Fingerprinting Uncovers the Distinction Between the Phenotypes of Tuberculosis Associated COPD and Smoking-Induced COPD.

Although smoking is considered the main cause of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), several other risk factors, including pulmonary tuberculosis (TB), contribute significantly to disease causation, particularly in developing countries. However, the underlying pathogenesis of TB-associated COPD (T-COPD) is unclear. Moreover, the need for prompt diagnosis and treatment of T-COPD to decrease the future burden of inflammation is underestimated.

Effects of a Mixture of Ivy Leaf Extract and on Patients with Chronic Bronchitis and Bronchiectasis.

Background: Hederacoside C from ivy leaf dry extracts (HH) and berberine from dry extracts (CR) can be combined (HHCR) as a herbal product. Previous studies have demonstrated that HHCR has antitussive and expectorant effects in animal models of respiratory disease. However, the therapeutic effects of HHCR on respiratory diseases in humans have not been well-studied.

Association between plasma interleukin-33 level and acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Background: The role of interleukin (IL)-33 in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has not been well elucidated. The aim of this study is to analyze the association between plasma IL-33 level and acute exacerbation of COPD.

Methods: Plasma IL-33 was measured in 62 COPD patients during their stable state.

Clinical Characteristics of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in Female Patients: Findings from a KOCOSS Cohort.

Purpose: The prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in females has increased, changing the concept of COPD as a disease mostly limited to males. In this study, the clinical characteristics of COPD in females were investigated.

Patients And Methods: The study was based on a multicenter cohort of COPD patients recruited from 54 medical centers in South Korea.

A Nationwide Study of Severe Cutaneous Adverse Reactions Based on the Multicenter Registry in Korea.

Background: Because severe cutaneous adverse reactions (SCARs), such as Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS), toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), and drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) rarely occur, clinical data based on large-scale studies are still lacking.

Objective: To provide information on culprit drugs and clinical characteristics, including morbidity and mortality of SCARs based on a nationwide registry.

Methods: SCAR cases that occurred from 2010 to 2015 were recruited to the Korean SCAR registry from 34 tertiary referral hospitals.

Validation of Previous Spirometric Reference Equations and New Equations.

Background: Pulmonary functions are interpreted using predicted values from reference equations that vary with ethnicity, gender, age, height, and weight. The universally used Choi's reference equations are not validated for Korean populations, and the purpose of this study was to validate them and develop new reference equations.

Methods: Subjects with normal spirometry and chest radiographs, no co-morbidities, and non-smokers, from the Korean National Health and National Examination Survey (KNHANES)-VI were enrolled (n = 117).

Risk of acute exacerbations in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease associated with biomass smoke compared with tobacco smoke.

Background: Risk of exacerbations in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) associated with biomass smoke has not been well addressed, although biomass smoke is similar in composition to tobacco smoke.

Methods: To investigate whether the risk of exacerbations in COPD associated with biomass smoke differs from that in COPD associated with tobacco smoke, we recruited patients with COPD from two Korean multicenter prospective cohorts. In a multiple linear regression model, the standardized regression coefficient (β) of biomass smoke exposure ≥25 years was most similar to that (β) of tobacco smoke exposure ≥10 pack-years (β = - 0.

Longitudinal change of FEV and inspiratory capacity: clinical implication and relevance to exacerbation risk in patients with COPD.

Background And Objective: FEV is the gold standard for assessment of COPD. We compared efficacy of FEV, inspiratory capacity (IC), and IC to total lung capacity (TLC) ratio in the evaluation of COPD and their association with exacerbation.

Methods: We analyzed the association of dyspnea severity, quality of life status, and lung function with lung function measurements and exacerbation risk in 982 patients enrolled in the Korea COPD Subgroup Registry and Subtype Research study.

Adherence to the GOLD Guideline in COPD Management of South Korea: Findings from KOCOSS Study 2011-2018.

The guidelines for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) treatment are important for the management of the disease. However, studies regarding the treatment adherence to the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) guidelines have been scarce in Korea. Therefore, to examine the adherence to the GOLD guidelines, we examined the patterns of prescribed medication in COPD patients from 2011 to 2018.

Decreased serum club cell secretory protein in asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease overlap: a pilot study.

Purpose: Improvement in the diagnosis of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) overlap (ACO), and identification of biomarkers for phenotype recognition will encourage good patient care by providing optimal therapy. We investigated club cell secretory protein (CC-16), a protective and anti-inflammatory mediator, as a new candidate biomarker for diagnosing ACO.

Patients And Methods: We performed a multicenter cohort study.

Difference in systemic inflammation and predictors of acute exacerbation between smoking-associated COPD and tuberculosis-associated COPD.

Purpose: Tuberculosis-associated COPD (T-COPD) has clinical characteristics similar to those of smoking-associated COPD (S-COPD), such as dyspnea, sputum production, and acute exacerbation (AE). However, the degree of systemic inflammation and prognosis might be different because of difference in the pathophysiology. The aim of this study was to compare the lung function, systemic inflammatory markers, and their impacts on AE in patients with S-COPD and T-COPD.

Elevated interleukin-6 and bronchiectasis as risk factors for acute exacerbation in patients with tuberculosis-destroyed lung with airflow limitation.

Background: Patients with tuberculosis-destroyed lungs (TDLs), with airflow limitation, have clinical characteristics similar to those of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Acute exacerbation is an important factor in the management of TDL. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the factors associated with acute exacerbations in patients with stable TDL with airflow limitation.

Increased urinary l-histidine in patients with asthma-COPD overlap: a pilot study.

Purpose: Asthma-COPD overlap (ACO) is heterogeneous in nature and requires a unified diagnostic approach. We investigated the urinary levels of l-histidine, a precursor of histamine related to inflammatory responses, as a new candidate biomarker for diagnosing this condition.

Patients And Methods: We performed a prospective multicenter cohort study with retrospective analysis of 107 patients, who were divided into three groups: asthma, COPD, and ACO, according to the Spanish guidelines algorithm.