News by Subject Medicine & Health

University of Maryland School of Medicine researchers found that lung transplant recipients who had early signs of organ rejection could increase their chances of survival by inhaling a liposomal form of the immunosuppression drug cyclosporine through an investigational nebulizer. This is the first randomized, controlled study to demonstrate increased survival and improved lung function with this drug-device combination.

In a new study published in Science Signaling, Cleveland Clinic researchers have identified a novel target for new therapies that may help to treat or prevent a host of fibrotic conditions, which contribute to nearly half of overall mortality in the United States.

In a study of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or IPF, recruited monocyte-derived macrophages with increased flux in their mevalonate pathway were able induce lung fibrosis in a mouse model without prior lung injury. Furthermore, study of humans with IPF showed that three hallmarks of the mechanism that leads to lung fibrosis in the absence of injury in mice are also found in bronchoalveolar, or BAL, cells from these patients.

More than 100 of the nation's leading pulmonologists have proposed new criteria for diagnosing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The new criteria could better capture the full spectrum of people suffering from COPD, lead to better care for patients, and stimulate research to slow or stop progression of the disease or even prevent it. The proposal expands diagnostic criteria from a single measure of lung function to include environmental exposure, symptoms, and abnormal CT scans.

Each time a newborn baby hiccups, it triggers a large wave of brain signals which could help the baby learn how to regulate their breathing, finds a new UCL-led study published in Clinical Neurophysiology.