[National Survey on the Activity of Lung Function Laboratories. Effects During the SARS-COV-2 Pandemic]. / Encuesta sobre la actividad de los laboratorios de función pulmonar. Efectos durante la pandemia por SARS-CoV-2.

Introduction: Following the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in March 2020, pulmonary function testing (PFT) laboratories underwent a transformation, with a reduction in the number of tests or closure in some cases. The aim of this work was to know the activity of PFT in Spain and the modification of this activity due to the pandemic. Material and methods: A protocolised survey was carried out to members of the PFT laboratories through the Spanish Society of Pneumology and Thoracic Surgery (SEPAR). Results: Thirty-nine hospitals in Spain responded. The pulmonary function tests most frequently performed in the PFT laboratories were forced spirometry with bronchodilator test (100%), body plethysmography (97.4%), CO transfer capacity (97.4%), respiratory muscle strength measured in the mouth (97.4%), 6-minute walking test (94.7%), measurement of exhaled fraction of nitric oxide (92.3%) and incremental exercise test (71.8%).The pandemic led to a significant decrease in the number of tests (35.4%) during 2020 with subsequent recovery in 2021, without reaching pre-pandemic values.The most important changes were increased examination times, working with personal protective equipment and ventilation of the rooms. The performance of the nasopharyngeal swab for SARS-CoV2 testing prior to the tests was not homogeneous in the PFT laboratories. Conclusions: Most hospitals are sufficiently equipped to perform the most common pulmonary function tests. The pandemic resulted in a loss of activity in all hospitals.

Prognostic factors of progressive fibrotic hypersensitivity pneumonitis: a large, retrospective, multicentre, observational cohort study.

Background: Fibrotic hypersensitivity pneumonitis (fHP) is an immune-mediated interstitial lung disease caused by sensitisation to chronic allergen inhalation. This study aimed to determine prognostic indicators of progression and mortality in fHP. Methods: This was a retrospective, multicentre, observational, cross-sectional cohort study of consecutive patients diagnosed with fHP from 1 January 2012 to 31 December 2021. Multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals for predictors of progression and survival. Results: A total of 403 patients were diagnosed with fHP: median (interquartile range) age 66.5 (14.0) years, 51.9% females and 55.1% never-smokers. The cause of fHP was mainly fungal (39.7%) or avian (41.4%). Lung biopsy was performed in 269 cases (66.7%). In the whole cohort the variables that were related to mortality or lung transplant were older age (HR 1.08; p<0.001), percentage predicted forced vital capacity (HR 0.96; p=0.001), lymphocytosis in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) (HR 0.93; p=0.001), presence of acute exacerbation during follow-up (HR 3.04; p=0.001) and GAP (gender, age and lung physiology) index (HR 1.96; p<0.01). In the group of biopsied patients, the presence of fibroblastic foci at biopsy (HR 8.39; p<0.001) stands out in multivariate Cox regression analyses as a highly significant predictor for increased mortality or lung transplant. GAP index (HR 1.26; p=0.009), lymphocytosis in BAL (HR 0.97; p=0.018) and age (HR 1.03; p=0.018) are also predictors of progression. Conclusions: The study identified several prognostic factors for progression and/or survival in fHP. The presence of fibroblastic foci at biopsy was a consistent predictor for increased mortality and the presence of lymphocytosis in BAL was inversely related to mortality.

[Influence of Clinical Practice Guidelines on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis. Data from the Registry of the Spanish Society of Pulmonology and Thoracic Surgery]. / Influencia de las guías de práctica clínica en el diagnóstico y tratamiento de la fibrosis pulmonar idiopática. Datos del Registro de la Sociedad Española de Neumología y Cirugía Torácica.

Objective: The objective of the study was to analyze the diagnostic process and the time until the start of treatment of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis in relation to the publication of successive clinical practice guide. Material and methods: Multicenter, observational, ambispective study, in which patients includes in the idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis registry of the Spanish Society of Pulmonologist and Thoracic Surgery were analyzed. An electronic data collection notebook was enabled on the society's website. Sociodemographic and clinical variables were collected at diagnosis and follow-up of the patients. Results: From January 2012 to december 2019, 1064 patients were included in the registry, with 929 finally analyzed. The diagnosis process varied depending on the year in which it was performed, and the radiological pattern observed in the high-resolution computed tomography. Up to 26.3% of the cases (244) were diagnosed with chest high-resolution computed tomography and clinical evaluation. Surgical biopsy was used up to 50.2% of cases diagnosed before 2011, while it has been used in 14.2% since 2018. The median time from the onset of symptoms to diagnosis was 360 days (IQR 120-720), taking more than 2 years in the 21.0% of patients. A percentage of 79.4 of patients received antifibrotic treatment. The average time from diagnosis to the antifibrotic treatment has been 309 ± 596.5 days, with a median of 49 (IQR 0-307). Conclusions: The diagnostic process, including the time until diagnosis and the type of test used, has changed from 2011 to 2019, probably due to advances in clinical research and the publication of diagnostic-therapeutic consensus guidelines.

[Combined pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema]. / Combinación de fibrosis pulmonar y enfisema.

The combination of pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema (CPFE) is a recently defined syndrome, in which an upper lobe emphysema and lower lobe fibrosis coexist in a single patient. These patients have a characteristic lung function profile, with dynamic and static lung volumes apparently normal or minimally altered, contrasting with a significant reduction of carbon monoxide transfer (DLco) and exercise hypoxemia. Pulmonary hypertension is highly prevalent and is the principal negative prognostic factor for this condition. High resolution computed axial tomography (HRCT) is the main tool to confirm the diagnosis. Cigarette smoking has been proposed as the main factor in its etiology; however, neither pathogenic mechanisms nor the sequence of events involved in this syndrome has been clarified yet. Experimental studies in animal models are providing information on the involvement of some inflammatory mediators in the pathogenesis. There is currently no consensus on the therapeutic approach to be followed in these patients, since those published to date on this subject are limited to well-characterised series of cases. Therefore, it is a pathology with many unknowns yet to be resolved and highly likely to be underdiagnosed, unless its functional clinical characteristics are taken into account.

Combinación de fibrosis pulmonar y enfisema: ¿es el tabaco una vez más el protagonista? / No disponible

No disponible

Combinación de fibrosis pulmonar y enfisema / Combined Pulmonary Fibrosis and Emphysema

La combinación de fibrosis pulmonar y enfisema (CFPE), es un síndrome definido recientemente, en el cual coexisten en un mismo individuo enfisema en lóbulos superiores y fibrosis en lóbulos inferiores. Estos pacientes presentan un perfil funcional respiratorio característico, con volúmenes pulmonares dinámicos y estáticos aparentemente normales o mínimamente alterados que contrastan con una grave alteración de la difusión del monóxido de carbono (DLCO) e hipoxemia arterial, la cual empeora durante el esfuerzo. La prevalencia de hipertensión pulmonar es elevada y representa la principal condición que determina el pronóstico. La Tomografía axial computarizada de alta resolución (TCAR) constituye la herramienta primordial para confirmar su diagnóstico. Se ha postulado al humo del tabaco como el principal agente etiológico, sin embargo, ni los mecanismos fisiopatológicos ni la secuencia de eventos involucrados en este síndrome ha sido aún dilucidados. Estudios experimentales en modelos animales, están proporcionando información sobre la participación de algunos mediadores inflamatorios en su patogenia. Actualmente, no existe un consenso sobre la actitud terapéutica a seguir en estos pacientes, puesto que lo publicado hasta la fecha sobre esta entidad se limita a series de casos bien caracterizadas. Es por tanto, una patología con múltiples incógnitas todavía por resolver y con alta probabilidad de ser infradiagnosticada si no se tienen en cuenta sus particularidades clínico-funcionales(AU)

The combination of pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema (CPFE) is a recently defined syndrome, in which anupper lobe emphysema and lower lobe fibrosis coexist in a single patient. These patients have a characteristic lung function profile, with dynamic and static lung volumes apparently normal or minimally altered, contrasting with a significant reduction of carbon monoxide transfer (DLco) and exercise hypoxemia. Pulmonary hypertension is highly prevalent and is the principal negative prognostic factor for this condition. High resolution computed axial tomography (HRCT) is the main tool to confirm the diagnosis. Cigarette smoking has been proposed as the main factor in its etiology; however, neither pathogenic mechanisms nor the sequence of events involved in this syndrome has been clarified yet. Experimental studies in animal models are providing information on the involvement of some inflammatory mediators in the pathogenesis. There is currently no consensus on the therapeutic approach to be followed in these patients, since those published to date on this subject are limited to well-characterised series of cases. Therefore, it is a pathology with many unknowns yet to be resolved and highly likely to be underdiagnosed, unless its functional clinical characteristics are taken into acount(AU)

La anemia en la EPOC. ¿Debemos pensar en ello? / Anemia in COPD: should it be taken into consideration?

El reconocimiento reciente de la importancia que tienen las manifestaciones extrapulmonares, tanto en el manejo como en el pronóstico de la enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica (EPOC) ha llevado a que reconduzcamos las estrategias diagnósticas y terapéuticas hacia ellas, y que no centremos nuestros esfuerzos en valorar sólo una variable funcional (el volumen espiratorio forzado en el primer segundo) como marcador de supervivencia en estos pacientes. Los trastornos sistémicos relacionados con la EPOC más estudiados son la pérdida de peso, la disfunción muscular, la osteoporosis y la enfermedad cardiovascular. Sin embargo, hay otros posibles efectos, como el síndrome anémico, que también podría ser consecuencia de la anormal respuesta inflamatoria que se produce en esta enfermedad. Por otra parte, la anemia como comorbilidad asociada a ciertas enfermedades crónicas, caso del cáncer y de la insuficiencia cardíaca, ha demostrado actuar como un marcador de mortalidad independiente. Se trata, por lo tanto, de una entidad que debe tenerse en cuenta en el manejo integral del paciente respiratorio, ya que puede tener un impacto claramente perjudicial en diversos aspectos de la enfermedad, como la disnea, la tolerancia al ejercicio y la calidad de vida. En la literatura médica hay un número creciente de estudios que abordan la relación entre la anemia y la EPOC. Esta revisión se centrará en revisar brevemente los aspectos fisiopatológicos relacionados con el tema y en discutir algunas de las últimas evidencias publicadas hasta el momento

Recent recognition of the importance of nonpulmonary signs and symptoms in the management and prognosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has led to a shift in the focus of diagnostic and therapeutic strategies to encompass these aspects. We no longer concentrate on assessing a single functional variable (forced expiratory volume in 1 second) as a predictor of survival in these patients. Most of the research undertaken to date into COPD-related systemic disorders has targeted weight loss, muscular dysfunction, osteoporosis, and cardiovascular disease. However, the abnormal inflammatory response associated with COPD may provoke other disorders such as anemia. Moreover, comorbid anemia has been shown to be an independent predictor of mortality in several chronic diseases including cancer and heart failure. Anemia is, therefore, an entity that should be taken into consideration in the overall management of respiratory disease because it may have a clear detrimental impact on various aspects of the patient´s health, including dyspnea, exercise tolerance, and quality of life. There is a growing body of literature on the relationship between anemia and COPD. Our aim is to briefly review the pathophysiologic aspects of this association before going on to discuss some of the most recent evidence published

Quiste pleuropericárdico: un buen final para un mal inicio / Pericardial cyst: all’s well that ends well

No disponible

No disponible