“What’s the weather going to be today?” It’s a frequent question that has larger implications for those with lung disease. Whether it’s summer or winter, rainy or windy, people with lung disease should pay attention to the weather report as sudden changes in the weather as well as extreme weather conditions can provoke lung symptoms….
Antipsychotics have been tied to acute respiratory failure in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), Taiwanese researchers reported. In a population-based, case-crossover study, more COPD patients had filled a prescription for antipsychotics 2 weeks before having acute respiratory failure compared with a control period several months prior (11.7% versus 8.8%), Meng-Ting Wang, PhD, of…
With New Year’s resolutions kicking into high gear in the month of January, why not help your patients truly stop smoking in this New Year. Especially with your pregnant patients, it is even more important to support a high quality smoking cessation program in our daily practices. Women who smoke during pregnancy may be more…
Many people believe electronic cigarettes (also called e-cigarettes or vapes) are a safe alternative to traditional cigarettes. But with a new report from the U.S. surgeon general calling e-cigarette use “a major public health concern,” this may not be the case. The FDA reports an alarming 900% rise in e-cigarette use among high school students…
As we have found with the recent deaths in Australia in the news from “thunderstorm asthma” it is important to remember that storms can trigger your patient’s asthma and allergies that could, in severe situations, kill a patient. Asthma and thunderstorms Thunderstorm asthma is a potentially dangerous mix of pollens, weather conditions and rain that…
Cigarette smokers who are HIV positive appear to have a higher chance of dying from smoking-related complications than from HIV, according to research published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. Numerous health problems are associated with smoking. Smokers have a high chance of developing heart disease, cancer, serious lung diseases, and other infections, such as…
You want a trip to Philip Morris International to feel like a visit to Marlboro Country. But the company’s Swiss research center, aka the Cube, just won’t play along. Perched above crystalline Lake Neuchatel, southwest of Zurich, the glass hexahedron holds secrets to a future when, Philip Morris says, the world will be blissfully smoke-free….
Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago have been awarded a $1.5 million grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to study the impact of diagnostic error on outcomes for pulmonary patients and the use of lung-function testing in primary care. More than 30 million adults in the U.S. have been diagnosed…