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Biomedical subjects

M Miravitlles

Publications and source records attributed to M Miravitlles.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

[Screening program for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, using dried blood spots on filter paper].

Alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency is an under-diagnosed disease and screening programs have therefore been recommended for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We present the results of the pilot phase of a screening program for AAT deficiency in order to evaluate the technique used, the procedures for transporting samples and the results obtained. Over a period of one month, five centers collected samples from all COPD patients for whom plasma concentrations of AAT or Pi phenotype had not yet been determined. Capillary blood spots were dried on filter paper and then sent by surface mail to a central laboratory for study. An immunonephelometric assay was used to determine AAT and DNA phenotyping was done by use of a Light Cycler. Samples were analyzed from 86 COPD patients (76 men, 10 women) with a mean age of 68.2 years. AAT deficiency was ruled out for 74 patients (86%) who had concentrations above the cutoff established, although one of them was MZ heterozygote by genotype. Among the 12 remaining patients (13.9%), only two also had a Z allele. The rest were individuals with concentrations below the established threshold and no evidence of a Z allele (10 patients, 11.6%). The Z allele frequency observed (3/172; 1.74%) was very similar to that found in the general population. The results of this pilot study allowed us to confirm that the method used to collect samples worked well. The sampling method is applicable, easy and well-accepted by participating physicians. It allowed AAT concentrations and Z allele deficiency to be determined. The method correlates well with standard techniques used for samples in whole blood.

Aged↗
PubMed2003

[A comparison of moxifloxacin and amoxicillin in the treatment of community-acquired pneumonia in Latin America: results of a multicenter clinical trial].

Since community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a common disease with a high morbidity rate, it is important to obtain information concerning its etiology and susceptibility to antibiotics across different geographic areas. This study presents data obtained in 5 Latin American counties in the course of an international clinical trial that evaluated the efficacy and safety of treatment with either moxifloxacin or amoxicillin administered for 10 days to patients suspected of having CAP caused by a pneumococcal infection. Details are given of the pathogens identified, the patterns of sensitivity to antibiotics observed, and the clinical and microbiological results obtained.A total of 84 patients were studied, of whom 70 (83.3%) were evaluated at the end of the trial to determine the efficacy and safety of the treatment received. Gram-positive bacteria were found in samples from 29 patients (80.5%). The pathogen was Streptococcus pneumoniae in 28 of those cases (77.7%). Gram-negative bacteria were found in 7 patients (19.4%), the most common being Haemophilus influenzae in 3 patients (8.3%). The presence of atypical microorganisms was detected in 18 of the 70 patients (25%), mainly Mycobacterium pneumoniae (n=11), and in 6 cases (8.5%) the infection was mixed. Ten strains of S. pneumoniae (35.7%) were shown to be susceptible to penicillin, 2 (7.1%) were highly resistant, and 16 (57.1%) showed moderate resistance. The clinical success rate at the final visit after treatment was 94.1% for moxifloxacin and 91.7% for amoxicillin. The results of this trial demonstrate a high prevalence of S. pneumoniae with reduced susceptibility to penicillin in patients with CAP in Latin America. It also revealed a high incidence of atypical pathogens and mixed infection in 8.6% of patients. This information should be taken into account when establishing protocols for empirical treatment of CAP in Latin America.

Amoxicillin↗
PubMed2003

Health outcomes following treatment for six months with once daily tiotropium compared with twice daily salmeterol in patients with COPD.

BACKGROUND: A study was undertaken to record exacerbations and health resource use in patients with COPD during 6 months of treatment with tiotropium, salmeterol, or matching placebos. METHODS: Patients with COPD were enrolled in two 6-month randomised, placebo controlled, double blind, double dummy studies of tiotropium 18 micro g once daily via HandiHaler or salmeterol 50 micro g twice daily via a metered dose inhaler. The two trials were combined for analysis of heath outcomes consisting of exacerbations, health resource use, dyspnoea (assessed by the transitional dyspnoea index, TDI), health related quality of life (assessed by St George's Respiratory Questionnaire, SGRQ), and spirometry. RESULTS: 1207 patients participated in the study (tiotropium 402, salmeterol 405, placebo 400). Compared with placebo, tiotropium but not salmeterol was associated with a significant delay in the time to onset of the first exacerbation. Fewer COPD exacerbations/patient year occurred in the tiotropium group (1.07) than in the placebo group (1.49, p<0.05); the salmeterol group (1.23 events/year) did not differ from placebo. The tiotropium group had 0.10 hospital admissions per patient year for COPD exacerbations compared with 0.17 for salmeterol and 0.15 for placebo (not statistically different). For all causes (respiratory and non-respiratory) tiotropium, but not salmeterol, was associated with fewer hospital admissions while both groups had fewer days in hospital than the placebo group. The number of days during which patients were unable to perform their usual daily activities was lowest in the tiotropium group (tiotropium 8.3 (0.8), salmeterol 11.1 (0.8), placebo 10.9 (0.8), p<0.05). SGRQ total score improved by 4.2 (0.7), 2.8 (0.7) and 1.5 (0.7) units during the 6 month trial for the tiotropium, salmeterol and placebo groups, respectively (p<0.01 tiotropium v placebo). Compared with placebo, TDI focal score improved in both the tiotropium group (1.1 (0.3) units, p<0.001) and the salmeterol group (0.7 (0.3) units, p<0.05). Evaluation of morning pre-dose FEV(1), peak FEV(1) and mean FEV(1) (0-3 hours) showed that tiotropium was superior to salmeterol while both active drugs were more effective than placebo. CONCLUSIONS: Exacerbations of COPD and health resource usage were positively affected by daily treatment with tiotropium. With the exception of the number of hospital days associated with all causes, salmeterol twice daily resulted in no significant changes compared with placebo. Tiotropium also improved health related quality of life, dyspnoea, and lung function in patients with COPD.

Administration, Inhalation↗
PubMed2002

[Importance of serum interleukin-6 as a mediator of systemic inflammation in patients with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency].

The objective of this study was to determine whether high concentrations of circulating interleukin-6 (IL-6) and/or the soluble receptor of IL-6 (SRIL-6) may mediate systemic inflammatory activity in patients with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD). To that end we assessed serum concentrations of IL-6 and SRIL-6 for 7 patients with AATD in stable phase. The patients' mean age was 51 years (SD 5.2); mean FEV1% was 35.5% (SD 15%). IL-6 and SRIL-6 concentrations were compared with those of 23 non-AATD patients with COPD but with similar changes in lung function (mean age 63 years, SD 10.1; FEV1% 38.3%, SD 11%). The AADT patients had mean IL-6 concentrations of 4.7 pg/mL (interquartile range [IR( 4.0) and RSIL-6 levels of 129.1 ng/mL (IR 31.5). The COPD patients had IL-6 concentrations of 4.1 pg/mL (IR 4.2) and SRIL-6 levels of 140.8 ng/mL (IR 71). No significant differences between the AADT group and the COPD group were observed for either cytokine (non-parametric Mann Whitney U test, p > 0.05). Only one AADT patient had an IL-6 concentration that was higher than normal. In conclusion, the serum IL-6 and SRIL-6 concentrations of patients with AADT are not different from those of patients with COPD, similarly altered respiratory function and normal alpha-1 antitrypsin levels. These results do not point to a role for alpha-1 antitrypsin in systemic inflammatory stimulation in patients with AADT.

Data Interpretation, Statistical↗
PubMed2002

[Use of the Internet in a multicenter study of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in primary care. Pilot phase of the EFEMAP study].

OBJECTIVE: To determine the reliability of clinical data collection and transmission by Internet in a multicenter primary care study. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Multicenter, observational study of a population of patients with exacerbated chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). All data were gathered in a specifically designed digital program on a palm-held pocket computer. Information was transmitted on-line by modem to a central database. RESULTS: Thirty-nine researchers participated in this pilot phase. Over three months 324 patients were treated. Thirty-seven telephone consultations were generated, most (54%) in reference to how the digitized questionnaire worked. Questions were solved in a mean 5.44 minutes. No important technical problems occurred and no information was lost. CONCLUSIONS: The use of the Internet to transfer data for multicentric studies in primary care is possible. This system should be more widely used in the future, as it allows faster data collection and eliminates the need to input data at the end of the study.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed2002

[Respiratory symptoms and diagnosis of COPD in smokers of various types to tobacco. Results from the IBERPOC study].

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate the sociodemographic characteristics, smoking habits, the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in four groups of smokers: of cigarettes (SCt), of cigars (SCigar), of both (SB), of cigars currently but of cigarettes in the past (SCigarExCt) and of cigarettes currently but of cigars in the past (SCtExCigar). METHOD: A multicenter epidemiological study enrolling 4,035 subjects aged between 40 and 69 years. One thousand nine hundred sixty-three were non-smokers and 1,146 were current smokers. Among the smokers, 869 were SCt, 37 were SCigar, 97 were SB, 86 were SCigarExCt and 57 were SCtExCigar. We analyzed sociodemographic characteristics, smoking and the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and COPD. RESULTS: Cigar smokers were usually men, of lower socioeconomic status (p < 0.001) and older than cigarette smokers (p < 0.001), but CO concentrations in expired air were lower in the SCigar group than in the SCt group (5 ppm vs 15.7; p < 0.001). Informants who believed their smoking was not detrimental to their health or to that of second-hand smokers made up 86.5% of the SCigar group and 79.1% of the SCigarExCt group. COPD was diagnosed in 13.2% of the SCt group, in 24.7% of the SB group, and in 12.8% of the SCigarExCt group, in comparison with 4% of the non-smokers (p < 0.001 for all comparisons). CONCLUSIONS: SCigar are mainly older men with lower educational levels. Their concentrations of CO in expired air are low and they have little awareness of the health risks posed by their habit. SCigar who were once smokers of cigarettes have a higher prevalence of respiratory symptoms and COPD than non-smokers and the same prevalence of COPD as SCt.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Treatment and quality of life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Treatments administered to patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), especially when used in multiple combinations, are not free of interactions and side effects that can potentially impair health-related quality of life (HRQL). We studied HRQL and its relationship with treatment in a group of 441 patients with stage II or III COPD (age: 66.6 (SD: 8.3) years; FEV1: 32.4% (SD: 8.1%)) using the St George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) and the 12-item short form (SF-12) Health Survey. The most prescribed drugs were ipratropium bromide (87.5%), inhaled corticosteroids (69.4%) and short-acting beta-2 agonists (64.9%). Patients with stage III of the disease were receiving more drugs, particularly short-acting beta-2 agonists (p = 0.002) and inhaled corticosteroids (p = 0.031). The use of theophyllines was associated with a worse total SGRQ score (beta = 4.49; p < 0.001), although this negative association decreased with advanced age. A trend towards worse SGRQ scores was observed with the use of high doses of long-acting beta-2 agonists (beta = 3.22; p = 0.072). Patients receiving three drugs or more presented worse total SGRQ scores than patients receiving fewer drugs (beta = 6.1, p < 0.001; and beta = 7.64, p < 0.001, respectively). These findings suggest that the use of multiple drugs in the treatment of patients with COPD is associated with worse total SGRQ scores. The effect of drugs, their dosages and associations with other drugs on HRQL merit further research.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗
PubMed2002

Influence of deficient alpha1-anti-trypsin phenotypes on clinical characteristics and severity of asthma in adults.

Severe alpha1-anti-trypsin (AAT) deficiency implies a high risk of pulmonary emphysema development. The possible relationship between partial deficiencies of this enzyme and bronchial asthma remains controversial. The objective of this study was to ascertain the distribution of AAT phenotypes in a non-selected asthmatic patient population. Across-sectional study on a sample of 111 patients with asthma was carried out. Demographic and clinical variables were collected with serum IgE concentrations, plasma eosinophil number and serum AAT concentrations determined, together with the Pi phenotype. Asthma was mild in 36 (32.4%) patients, moderate in 45 (40.5%) and severe in 30 (27%). No differences were observed in eosinophil count or serum IgE or AAT concentrations among patients with different degrees of severity. Twenty-two (19.8%) asthmatics with deficient phenotypes for AAT were identified, distributed equally in all severity stages of the disease. No significant differences were found in clinical and functional characteristics, or in asthma morbidity between PiMM and PiMS patients or the heterozygote group (PiMS and PiMZ). Eosinophil count and IgE concentrations did not differ significantly between asthmatics with normal phenotype and heterozygotes. In conclusion, the distribution of AAT phenotypes in asthmatic patients did not differ from that found in the general population. Heterozygote phenotypes for the deficiency do not appear to confer greater severity or different clinical expression of asthma in adults.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Interpretation of quality of life scores from the St George's Respiratory Questionnaire.

The aim of the study was to obtain the general population norms for the St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ), a specific questionnaire for respiratory diseases. The IBERPOC project was a cross-sectional study of representative samples of the general population aged between 40-69 yrs. The study sample was composed of 862 individuals. All participants considered as "probable cases" of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (n=460) were eligible to complete the SGRQ and among the rest of the nonprobable COPD participants (n=3,571), 10 individuals from each defined age and sex group were eligible (n=402). Weights were applied to restore general population representativity of the sample. Mean forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) predicted was 89.4% (SD=16.5%; range: 16-131%). Chronbach's alpha coefficients were >0.7 in the symptoms, activity and impact scales, and >0.9 in the overall scale. Symptom scale score was significantly higher among males (11.6 versus 7.8; p<0.01) and activity scale score was significantly higher among females (12.2 versus 14.6; p=0.04). In a multiple linear regression model, respiratory diseases (asthma and COPD) and FEV1 % over pred showed the strongest association with the SGRQ total score. Smoking, sex, age and education were independently associated with the total SGRQ score. These results indicate that individuals from the general population presented some of the problems that are important when measuring health-related quality of life in respiratory patients, and provide St George's Respiratory Questionnaire norms, a useful method for interpreting the St George's Respiratory Questionnaire score in a given patient or study samples.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency: a report from the 2nd meeting of the Alpha One International Registry, Rapallo (Genoa, Italy), 2001.

The Alpha One International Registry is a scientific foundation established to comply with a World Health Organization recommendation to develop a multinational registry of alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency, with the aim of creating a common database of subjects recognised in a standardised way. A commitment of the Alpha One International Registry members, belonging to 15 national registries, is to meet every 2 yrs in an open scientific conference to provide a scientific and clinical update on the deficiency. The second Alpha One International Registry meeting was held in Rapallo (Genoa, Italy) on September 27th-28th, 2001, and 26 speakers provided an exhaustive overview of all aspects of alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency, including epidemiology, genetics, biochemistry, associated conditions, established and novel therapeutic options, and markers of efficacy. In the framework of a rare and often under-recognised condition, this meeting is likely to be central to improving understanding and increasing awareness of alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency.

Female↗
PubMed2002

Exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: when are bacteria important?

The progressive course of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is often aggravated by exacerbations, the majority of them produced by bronchial infection. Frequent exacerbations have been demonstrated to have a negative impact on quality of life and pulmonary function in patients with COPD, particularly in active smokers. Furthermore, acute exacerbations are the most frequent cause of medical visits, hospital admissions and death among patients with chronic lung disease. Evidence indicates that the number of patients with pathogenic bacteria in respiratory secretions and the bronchial bacterial load increase during exacerbations. Furthermore, the local inflammatory response of the host parallels the increase in bacterial load. From these observations, it can be speculated that, for symptoms of acute exacerbation to appear, there must be a minimum bacterial load in the airways, i.e. a threshold above which the inflammatory reaction is severe enough to elicit clinical symptoms of exacerbation. This threshold may vary from patient to patient owing to different modifying factors. Some of these factors may be the recognised risk factors for relapse, such as increasing age, impairment of lung function, comorbid conditions or frequent exacerbations in the past. Relapse rates after ambulatory treatment of acute exacerbation of COPD may be as high as 20-25% of cases. Relapses are associated with significant mordibity and increased costs. A number of unanswered questions remain regarding exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. These include the role of viral infection, the importance of residual bacterial colonisation and the impact of new antibiotics on the treatment of exacerbations.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed2001

Factors associated with relapse after ambulatory treatment of acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis. DAFNE Study Group.

This study aimed to identify the risk factors for relapse after ambulatory treatment of acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis (AECB) that can easily be used in a primary care setting. Data were prospectively collected on 2,414 ambulatory patients with AECB from 268 general practices located throughout Spain. A multivariate model to identify risk factors independently associated with failures was developed and validated from the information recorded at the inclusion visit and at 30-days follow-up visit. A total of 507 patients relapsed (21%); of these, 84 required admission (16.5%). The multivariate model for prediction of the risk of relapse included 2,414 cases: 1,689 for the developmental sample and 725 in the validation sample. The model obtained contained three readily-obtainable variables: ischaemic heart disease (odds ratio (OR)=1.63; 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.07-2.47), degree of dyspnoea (OR = 1.31; 1.14-1.50) and number of visits to the general practitioner the previous year (OR = 1.07; 1.04-1.10). The model calibrated well in developmental and validation samples (goodness-of-fit tests: p = 0.295 and p = 0.637, respectively). Severity of the exacerbation was not associated with increased risk of relapse in either univariate or multivariate analysis. The present results suggest that baseline characteristics of the patients such as degree of dyspnoea, coexisting ischaemic heart disease and number of previous visits to the general practitioner for respiratory problems are strongly associated with increased risk of relapse after ambulatory treatment of acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis. In contrast, exacerbation severity was not associated with clinical failure. Guidelines for management of acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis should consider such risk factors and advocate intensive broad spectrum treatment and closer follow-up of patients exhibiting them.

Aged↗