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Biomedical subjects

Franco Nebiolo

Publications and source records attributed to Franco Nebiolo.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Exhaled nitric oxide as a diagnostic test for asthma in rhinitic patients with asthmatic symptoms.

BACKGROUND: Rhinitis is a major risk factor for asthma, so that evaluation of the lower airways is recommended in patients with rhinitis. Exhaled nitric oxide (FE(NO)) is considered a marker of airway inflammation and it has been found to be useful for the screening of patients with suspected diagnosis of asthma. Our aim was to assess the validity and accuracy of FE(NO) to identify patients with asthma in 48 non-smoking patients with persistent rhinitis and asthma-like symptoms. METHODS: Asthma was diagnosed on the basis of 12% improvement in FEV1 after salbutamol or a methocholine PD(20)FEV1<800 microg. Prior to lung function FE(NO) was measured with the single exhalation method at 50 ml/s. RESULTS: The geometric mean (95% confidence interval) FE(NO) was significantly higher in the 18/48 asthmatics than in the non-asthmatic patients (60 ppb, CI 95%: 50-89, versus 30 ppb, CI 95%: 28-45, P=0.001). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for the diagnosis of asthma indicated that FE(NO) is an acceptable discriminator between patients with and without asthma (area under the ROC curve=0.78). None of the asthmatic patients had FE(NO) values<25 ppb and all the patients with FE(NO)>100 ppb (n=5) were asthmatics. The sensitivity and specificity of FE(NO) for detecting asthma, using 36 ppb as cut-off point, were 78% and 60% and the positive and negative predictive values were 54% and 82%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Measuring FE(NO) may be useful for the screening of rhinitic patients with asthma-like symptoms.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Level of exhaled nitric oxide during human anaphylaxis.

BACKGROUND: Nitric oxide (NO) seems to play an important pathophysiologic role in modulating the systemic changes associated with anaphylaxis. Even if some effects of NO may be protective, animal models of anaphylaxis have shown that the summation effects of NO are deleterious, resulting in hypotension and loss of intravascular volume. There are no studies of NO production during anaphylaxis in humans. OBJECTIVE: To measure the level of exhaled NO during anaphylaxis induced by bee venom cluster immunotherapy in a 34-year-old beekeeper. METHODS: Exhaled NO was measured using a chemiluminescence analyzer at different flow rates, and alveolar NO concentration and airway NO production were calculated. RESULTS: We measured a high level of exhaled NO (78 ppb at 50 mL/s, with increased alveolar concentration and airway production) during anaphylaxis induced by bee venom immunotherapy in this patient. Normal values of exhaled NO were measured in the same patient 1 week later before and after a modified regimen of desensitization. CONCLUSIONS: Nitric oxide production was increased in the respiratory tract during anaphylaxis. Having excluded all the common causes of increased exhaled NO levels, these resultssupport the hypothesis that NO plays an important role in anaphylaxis.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Allergy to pigeon tick (Argas reflexus): demonstration of specific IgE-binding components.

BACKGROUND: The European tick, Argas reflexus, is an urban pest parasitizing urban pigeons and may cause a wide range of allergic reactions. METHODS: Specific IgE to A. reflexus, SDS-PAGE and IgE immunoblotting, performed with tick extract, were carried out in the sera of 6 patients who reported allergic reactions after tick bite. RESULTS: Specific IgE to A. reflexus (RAST class ranging from 1 to 3) were detected in the sera of 6 patients who reported allergic reactions (urticaria and angioedema in 2 and anaphylaxis in the other 4 patients) after tick bite. IgE reactivity to two bands of 22 and 40 kDa were identified in the patient sera. CONCLUSIONS: Allergy to A. reflexus has to be considered in allergic patients living in buildings where pigeons have their nests. The powerful sensitizing property of tick allergen is underlined by the observation that none of our patients was atopic.

Adult↗