BACKGROUND: Asthmatic patients frequently suffer cold-weather-associated respiratory symptoms. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy and diagnostic value of isocapnic hyperventilation of cold air(IHCA) using a multistep method was investigated in patients suspected to have asthma. METHOD: One hundred and 29 adult patients who had an IHCA performed between july 1999 and December 2000, had an methacholine bronchoprovocation test because of a clinical suspicion of asthma. RESULTS: According to strict criteria, 50 were defined as asthmatics and 79 as symptomatic nonashmatics. There were no differences in age, sex and smoking state between the asthmatic and symptomatic nonasthmatic groups. There was a significant decrease in the percentage reduction in the forced expiratory volume in 1 second(FEV1) after the IHCA between the asthmatics(-10.0±6.8%) and the symptomatic nonasthmatics(-2.3±2.5%). The factors associated with a reactivity to IHCA were FEV1/FVC, FEF25-75/FVC and FEV1(% of predicted). The accuracy was highest using a 7% fall in FEV1; the sensitivity was 76% and the specificity 96%. CONCLUSION: IHCA is a specific, although not a sensitive, test for diagnosing asthma in adult patients. Furthermore, the diagnostic cut-off value of the different methods of IHCA need to be determined.
Adult* ; Asthma* ; Forced Expiratory Volume ; Humans ; Hyperventilation* ; Methacholine Chloride ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Smoke ; Smoking

Pulmonary artery aneurysms are extremely rare. Even though their etiology or mechanism remain uncertain, congetial anenrysms follow the congenital heart defects which elevate the pulmonary artery pressure or increase the pulmonary blood flow and acquired aneurysms are developed by syphilis, mycotic change and atherosclerosis. Pulmonary artery aneurysms involve the artery trunk rupture and exanguination if untreated, there has been an emphasis in the need for surgical intervention whenever the diagnosis is made regardless of the presence or absence of symptoms. Here we report a case of patient ductus arterious associated with main pulmonary artery aneurysm in 39 year old female patient with review of literatures.
Adult ; Aneurysm* ; Arteries ; Atherosclerosis ; Diagnosis ; Ductus Arteriosus, Patent* ; Female ; Heart Defects, Congenital ; Humans ; Pulmonary Artery* ; Rupture ; Syphilis

No abstract available.
Lung Neoplasms* ; Lung* ; Neoplasm Metastasis* ; Toes*

No abstract available.
Bronchoscopes*

No abstract available.
Eosinophilic Granuloma* ; Eosinophils* ; Lymph Nodes*

No abstract available.
Lasers, Solid-State* ; Papilloma*

A 38-year-old woman presented with massive hemoptysis ( 200 mL/ 24 hours) occurring abruptly after generalized tonic clonic seizure. She experienced similar episodes of hemoptysis on three later occasions. Although the coexistence of hemoptysis and seizure has been reported, albeit rarely, as a clinical manifestation of postictal neurogenic pulmonary edema, massive hemoptysis after seizure is an extremely rare event with no recurrent cases of such episodes having ever been reported. The coexistence of hemoptysis and seizure increases the difficulty in diagnosis for the clinician. We describe the differential diagnosis among the diseases capable of causing seizure and hemoptysis.
Adult ; Case Report ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Epilepsy, Tonic-Clonic/*complications ; Female ; Hemoptysis/*diagnosis/etiology ; Human ; Pulmonary Alveoli ; Pulmonary Edema/complications ; Recurrence ; *Respiration, Artificial

Malignant melanoma develops from melanocytes and frequently metastases to other organs. Common metastatic sites are other skin, lymph nodes, lung, liver, brain and bone in decreasing order of frequency. Malignant pleural effusion is less frequent manifestation of thoracic metastasis. We experienced a 57-year-old man with pleural effusion who received radical resection with local flap on left foot due to acral lentiginous melanoma 3 years ago. He had progressive chest pain and left massive pleural effusion. The pleural cytology and biopsy showed malignant melanoma. After closed thoracostomy and talc pleurodesis, he refused further immunotherapy and chemotherapy and discharged.
Biopsy ; Brain ; Chest Pain ; Drug Therapy ; Foot ; Humans ; Immunotherapy ; Liver ; Lung ; Lymph Nodes ; Melanocytes ; Melanoma* ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Metastasis* ; Pleural Effusion* ; Pleural Effusion, Malignant ; Pleurodesis ; Skin ; Talc ; Thoracostomy

Pulmonary lymphangioleiomyomatosis is a disease involving the proliferation of atypical smooth muscle cells trom the perilymphatics, peribronchial and perivascular region of the lung and the retroperitneum. The disease usually affects women of child-bearing age. We recently experienced a case of pulmonary lymphangioleiomyomatosis in a 31-year-old women who had suffered from a chylous pleural effusion. Histologic confirmation of lymphangioleiomyomatosis was made upon a video-associated thoracoscopic lung biopsy. Here we report this case with a brief review of the literature.
Adult ; Biopsy ; Female ; Humans ; Lung ; Lymphangioleiomyomatosis* ; Myocytes, Smooth Muscle ; Pleural Effusion*

BACKGROUND: PET-CT can provide both a physiological and anatomical image with the benefits of both PET and CT scanners. This may improve the accuracy of a diagnosis of a mediastinal lymph node metastasis. The aims of this study were to compare PET-CT versus CT on the nodal staging of lung cancer and to determine if it could be used to avoid an invasive diagnostic examination. The benefit of the additional PET-CT as preoperative evaluation of the lung cancer was also assessed. METHODS: The results of CT and PET-CT scanning in 22 patients with a proven non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were correlated with the pathological findings of lymph node sampling using mediastinoscopy or surgery. RESULTS: The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive and negative predictive values of CT for detecting metastatic lymphadenopathy were 44%, 77%, 64%, 57%, and 67%, respectively. For PET-CT, these were 78%, 92%, 86%, 88%, and 86%, respectively. The earlier detection of a bone metastasis was obtained by PET-CT in 3 cases, which was not detected in bone scan. CONCLUSIONS: Better results for nodal staging and higher negative-predictive values by PET-CT (than CT) can avoid the need for invasive mediastinal staging of the lung cancer with negative mediastinal lymph node metastasis. An additional histological evaluation by mediastinoscopy needs to be done when positive findings are detected by PET-CT. PET-CT is also helpful in detecting a distant metastasis and avoiding unnecessary surgery. More accurate diagnostic staging can be expected using the simultaneous execution of PET-CT with a conventional preoperative evaluation of lung cancer.
Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms* ; Lung* ; Lymph Nodes ; Lymphatic Diseases ; Mediastinoscopy ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neoplasm Staging ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Unnecessary Procedures