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Rationale: Large airway dimensions on computed tomography (CT) have been associated with lung function, symptoms, and exacerbations in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), as well as with symptoms in smokers with preserved spirometry. Their prognostic significance in persons without lung disease remains undefined.
Objectives: To examine associations between large airway dimensions on CT and respiratory outcomes in a population-based cohort of adults without prevalent lung disease.
Methods: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis recruited participants ages 45-84 years without cardiovascular disease in 2000-2002; we excluded participants with prevalent chronic lower respiratory disease (CLRD). Spirometry was measured in 2004-2006 and 2010-2012. CLRD hospitalizations and deaths were classified by validated criteria through 2014. The average wall thickness for a hypothetical airway of 10-mm lumen perimeter on CT (Pi10) was calculated using measures of airway wall thickness and lumen diameter. Models were adjusted for age, sex, principal components of ancestry, body mass index, smoking, pack-years, scanner, percent emphysema, genetic risk score, and initial forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV) percent predicted.
Results: Greater Pi10 was associated with 9% faster FEV decline (95% confidence interval [CI], 2 to 15%; P = 0.012) and increased incident COPD (odds ratio, 2.22; 95% CI, 1.43-3.45; P = 0.0004) per standard deviation among 1,830 participants. Over 78,147 person-years, higher Pi10 was associated with a 57% higher risk of first CLRD hospitalization or mortality (P = 0.0496) per standard deviation. Of Pi10's component measures, both greater airway wall thickness and narrower lumen predicted incident COPD and CLRD clinical events.
Conclusions: In adults without CLRD, large airway dimensions on CT were prospectively associated with accelerated lung function decline and increased risks of COPD and CLRD hospitalization and mortality.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1513/AnnalsATS.201710-820OC | DOI Listing |
Am J Emerg Med
September 2025
University of South Carolina School of Medicine - Greenville, Greenville, SC, USA.
Total laryngectomy (TLE) results in the permanent separation of the respiratory and digestive tracts, requiring all airway interventions to occur exclusively via a neck stoma. Although airway obstruction in post-laryngectomy patients is uncommon, it can rapidly become fatal without prompt recognition and understanding of the altered anatomy. Here, we report the case of a patient with a recent TLE for squamous cell carcinoma, who presented to a rural Emergency Department (ED) in acute respiratory distress.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRadiat Environ Biophys
September 2025
Environmental Physics Department, Institute for Energy Security and Environmental Safety, HUN-REN Centre for Energy Research, Budapest, Hungary.
Variability in radiation-related health risk and genetic susceptibility to radiation effects within a population is a key issue for radiation protection. Besides differences in the health and biological effects of the same radiation dose, individual variability may also affect dose distribution and its consequences for the same exposure. As exposure to radon progeny affects a large population and has a well-established dose-effect relationship, investigating individual variability upon radon exposure may be particularly important.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPalliat Med Rep
August 2025
Division of Palliative Medicine, Mayo Clinic Arizona, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Airway obstruction is a distressing and potentially life-threatening complication in patients with advanced head and neck cancers, particularly squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the pharynx. This case highlights the clinical, ethical, and interdisciplinary complexities involved in managing airway compromise in the context of progressive disease and limited treatment options. A 75-year-old man with recurrent SCC of the soft palate, nasopharynx, oropharynx, and hypopharynx, recently initiated on pembrolizumab and radiation therapy, presented with dysphagia, stridor, and intermittent tumor bleeding.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCureus
August 2025
Allergy and Immunology, Wilford Hall Medical Center, San Antonio, USA.
We present two patients who presented with symptoms that overlap with asthma, but upon further diagnostic evaluation, were revealed to have underlying malignancy. These cases highlight the importance of objective evidence-based evaluation in unveiling diagnoses previously mislabeled as asthma. The first patient was a 51-year-old with one year of cough and waning albuterol responsiveness, with worsening orthopnea and exertional dyspnea.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAfr J Emerg Med
December 2025
University of Southern California, United States.
Introduction: Emergency medicine simulation is an effective training modality in both high and low resource settings. We describe the authors' experiences conducting a four-week interdisciplinary, , simulation training series at an emergency centre in Burundi.
Methods: Training emphasized effective closed loop communication, early airway, breathing, and circulation assessment, as well as time to vital signs, IV placement, and oxygen administration when appropriate.