The aim of the present study was to predict the prognosis of Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients who underwent comprehensive pulmonary rehabilitation (PR). A total of 144 patients who performed PR between 1992 and 1999 was assessed. After PR, 67 patients underwent lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS). Baseline data before PR consisted of body mass index, serum albumin levels, use of supplement oxygen at home, pulmonary function, arterial blood gas analysis, and distance and fall of hemoglobin oxygen saturation (DeltaSpO(2)) in 6-min walk test. In addition to pre-PR factors, treatment with LVRS was taken into the analysis. The prognostic significance of variables influencing survival was determined by univariate analysis with Log rank test or multivariate analysis using Cox's proportional hazard model. By a median follow-up time of 8.4 years, the median survival time was 8.1 years (95% confidence interval: 6.9-9.4 years). Albumin level, PaCO(2), distance and DeltaSpO(2) were significant prognostic factors in univariate analysis. LVRS did not affect the prognosis. The multivariate analysis showed short distance and increase of DeltaSpO(2) as significant independent predictors of the risk of death. 6-min walk test was very useful for predicting the prognosis of the COPD patients.

Measurement of EBC biomarkers is a non-invasive and useful way to evaluate airway inflammation in patients with asthma.

Background: Asthma is a common respiratory disease worldwide. However, few reports are available on the prevalences of asthma and asthma symptoms among Asian subjects. Methods: To determine the prevalences of asthma and asthma symptoms among Japanese subjects, we performed a nationwide cross-sectional, population-based study on Japanese adults aged 20–79 years. Ten areas spread throughout the country were randomly selected. Door-to-door or postal surveys were performed using a translated version of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey questionnaire. Results: The survey was completed by 23,483 participants. The overall response rate was 70.6%. The prevalences of wheeze and current asthma among all participants aged 20–79 years were 10.1% (95% CI: 9.7–10.5%) and 4.2% (95% CI: 4.0–4.5%), respectively. The prevalences among young adults aged 20–44 years were 9.3% (95% CI: 8.7–9.9%) and 5.3% (95% CI: 4.8–5.8%), respectively. The prevalence of current asthma was highest in females aged 30–39 years in comparison with the other gender and age groups. Conclusions: This nationwide study determined the prevalences of asthma and asthma symptoms among Japanese adults. The results provide fundamental information on the respiratory health of Japanese adults.