Study: Infant lung function deficits lead to childhood asthma
Lung function deficits and increased bronchial responsiveness related to future asthma may develop before birth, according to a study in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Scientists at the Danish Pediatric Asthma Centre in Copenhagen, Denmark, analyzed the interaction between asthma and lung function growth in 411 children from newborn to 7 years old. Subjects were enrolled during their first month of life and assessed every six months for seven years, with additional visits at onset of respiratory symptoms. Parents completed daily diary cards. The children with asthma at age 7 had significant airflow deficits as newborns, which worsened significantly through early childhood.
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Maintenance PPI therapy shows promise for children with EoE
Children with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) treated with proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) showed improvement in symptoms and z-scores, despite persistent eosinophilic inflammation, according to a study published in Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. Researchers at Cohen Children's Medical Center in New York followed 38 patients who met inclusion criteria for three years. At follow-up, 26 patients were asymptomatic, and the remaining 12 patients' symptoms were significantly improved. Significant eosinophilic inflammation persisted in 28 patients, but the z-scores of the treated EoE patients significantly improved.
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Azelastine-fluticasone better together for allergic rhinitis
An intranasal therapy formulation of azelastine and fluticasone is more effective than either agent alone for seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR), according to the pooled results of three randomized, controlled trials in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Researchers in four countries conducted three 14-day trials on a total of 3,398 patients with moderate-to-severe SAR during different allergy seasons. After a seven-day lead-in period, participants self-administered one spray to each nostril every 12 hours of either the formulation (137 mcg azelastine/50 mcg fluticasone propionate), or azelastine 137 mcg, or fluticasone 50 mcg, or a vehicle placebo. The results were combined in a meta-analysis and the reduction in baseline total nasal symptom score with the azelastine-fluticasone formulation (-5.7) was significantly greater (p<0.001) than with fluticasone (-5.1), azelastine (-4.4), or placebo (-3.0).
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