Restrictive Spirometric Pattern and Postoperative Pulmonary Complications Following Non-cardiothoracic Surgery.

Despite a substantial population of patients with a restrictive spirometric pattern, few studies have evaluated postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) after non-cardiothoracic surgery in these patients. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 681 adults with a normal or restrictive spirometric pattern who were referred for preoperative evaluation of PPC risk before non-cardiothoracic surgery between March 2014 and January 2015. Overall, 8.7% (59/681) of study participants developed a PPC following non-cardiothoracic surgery. The occurrence of PPCs in patients with a restrictive spirometric pattern was higher than that in those with normal spirometry (12.4% [35/282] vs. 6.0% [24/399], P = 0.003). The occurrence of PPCs increased across the categories of restrictive spirometric pattern severity (6.0% with a normal spirometric pattern vs. 6.5% with a mild restrictive spirometric pattern [60 ≤ forced vital capacity (FVC) < 80% predicted] vs. 21.2% with a moderate-to-severe restrictive spirometric pattern [FVC < 60% predicted], P for trend test < 0.001). The length of hospital stay (P for trend = 0.002) was longer, and all-cause mortality at 30 days (P for trend = 0.008) and 90 days (P for trend = 0.001) was higher across the restrictive spirometric pattern severity. In multivariable-adjusted analyses, a moderate-to-severe restrictive spirometric pattern was associated with a higher risk of PPCs compared with a normal spirometric pattern (adjusted odds ratio 2.64, 95% confidence interval 1.22-5.67). The incidence of PPCs in patients with a restrictive spirometric pattern was higher than that in those with a normal spirometric pattern, especially in patients with a moderate-to-severe restrictive spirometric pattern. Patients with a moderate-to-severe restrictive spirometric pattern should be regarded as high risk for developing PPCs following non-cardiothoracic surgery.

Clinical usefulness of routine AFB culture and MTB PCR of EBUS-TBNA needle rinse fluid.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: We evaluated the usefulness of acid-fast bacilli (AFB) culture and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) needle rinse fluid for diagnosing tuberculous lymphadenitis. METHODS: EBUS-TBNA needle rinse fluid was routinely used for AFB culture and MTB PCR. The patients were categorized according to the pre-procedural diagnosis (Group A, suspected/histology-confirmed lung cancer; Group B, extrapulmonary malignancy; and Group C, other benign diseases). RESULTS: Of the 4672 subjects, 104 (2.2%) were diagnosed with tuberculous lymphadenitis; 1.0%, 4.6% and 12.7% of Group A, B and C, respectively. Tuberculous lymphadenitis was diagnosed in 0.2%, 1.0% and 4.5% Group A, B and C patients, respectively, by histopathology. On addition of AFB culture to histopathology, tuberculous lymphadenitis was diagnosed in 1.0%, 4.4% and 10.3% of Group A, B and C patients, respectively (P < 0.001, P = 0.001 and P = 0.005, respectively). On addition of MTB PCR to histopathology, tuberculous lymphadenitis was diagnosed in 0.4%, 1.9% and 8.8%, respectively (Group C; P = 0.029). CONCLUSION: Routine AFB culture of needle rinse fluid was useful to increase the diagnostic yield of tuberculous lymphadenitis for all subjects who underwent EBUS-TBNA regardless of pre-procedural diagnosis in an intermediate tuberculosis (TB)-burden country. However, MTB PCR was only useful in subjects with pre-procedural diagnosis of benign pulmonary diseases.

Airflow limitation severity and post-operative pulmonary complications following extra-pulmonary surgery in COPD patients.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The association between airflow limitation severity and post-operative pulmonary complications (PPCs) among COPD patients undergoing extra-pulmonary surgery is unknown. We evaluated the association between forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1 ) and PPC in COPD patients undergoing extra-pulmonary surgery. METHODS: Using prospective cohort of PPC evaluation for extra-pulmonary surgery, we identified 694 COPD patients who conducted PPC evaluation before extra-pulmonary surgery between March 2014 and January 2015 at a tertiary hospital, Seoul, Korea. RESULTS: The overall incidence of PPC was 24.4%. The incidence of PPC in quintiles 1-5 of FEV1 (% predicted) was 31.4, 25.8, 23.7, 21.6 and 19.7%, respectively (P for trend: 0.019). In fully adjusted multivariable models, the relative risks (RRs, 95% CI) for PPC comparing participants in quintiles 1-4 of FEV1 (% predicted) with those in quintile 5 were 1.69 (1.03-2.79), 1.41 (0.83-2.37), 1.26 (0.75-2.11) and 1.30 (0.76-2.22), respectively (P for trend: 0.046). The association of severe airflow limitation with respiratory failure and post-operative exacerbations was stronger in participants who did not use bronchodilators compared with those who did. CONCLUSION: We found a progressive and significant relationship between severity of airflow limitation and the incidence of PPC in COPD patients undergoing extra-pulmonary surgery. Furthermore, perioperative bronchodilator use was associated with a reduced risk of respiratory failure and post-operative exacerbations in patients with severe airflow limitation.

Clinical and Laboratory Differences between Lymphocyte- and Neutrophil-Predominant Pleural Tuberculosis.

Pleural tuberculosis (TB), a form of extrapulmonary TB, can be difficult to diagnose. High numbers of lymphocytes in pleural fluid have been considered part of the diagnostic criteria for pleural TB; however, in many cases, neutrophils rather than lymphocytes are the predominant cell type in pleural effusions, making diagnosis more complicated. Additionally, there is limited information on the clinical and laboratory characteristics of neutrophil-predominant pleural effusions caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB). To investigate clinical and laboratory differences between lymphocyte- and neutrophil-predominant pleural TB, we retrospectively analyzed 200 patients with the two types of pleural TB. Of these patients, 9.5% had neutrophil-predominant pleural TB. Patients with lymphocyte-predominant and neutrophil-predominant pleural TB showed similar clinical signs and symptoms. However, neutrophil-predominant pleural TB was associated with significantly higher inflammatory serum markers, such as white blood cell count (P = 0.001) and C-reactive protein (P = 0.001). Moreover, MTB was more frequently detected in the pleural fluid from patients in the neutrophil-predominant group than the lymphocyte-predominant group, with the former group exhibiting significantly higher rates of positive results for acid-fast bacilli in sputum (36.8 versus 9.4%, P = 0.003), diagnostic yield of MTB culture (78.9% versus 22.7%, P < 0.001) and MTB detected by polymerase chain reaction (31.6% versus 5.0%, P = 0.001). Four of seven patients with repeated pleural fluid analyses revealed persistent neutrophil-predominant features, which does not support the traditional viewpoint that neutrophil-predominant pleural TB is a temporary form that rapidly develops into lymphocyte-predominant pleural TB. In conclusion, neutrophil-predominant pleural TB showed a more intense inflammatory response and a higher positive rate in microbiological testing compared to lymphocyte-predominant pleural TB. Pleural TB should be considered in neutrophil-predominant pleural effusions, and microbiological tests are warranted.

Lung Function Decline According to Clinical Course in Nontuberculous Mycobacterial Lung Disease.

BACKGROUND: There are few data regarding the impact of nontuberculous mycobacterial lung disease (NTM-LD) on lung function during the clinical course of disease. This study aimed to assess the impact of NTM-LD on lung function decline. METHODS: Treatment outcomes and spirometry data at diagnosis and at least three years later were obtained from 358 patients who were diagnosed with NTM-LD between January 1999 and November 2011 using the prospective NTM registry cohort. For analysis, patients were divided into three groups: those observed without treatment, those who had treatment success, and those in whom treatment failed. RESULTS: The treatment-failure group (n = 68) had a significantly more rapid decline in FEV1 and FVC compared with the observation (n = 118) and treatment-success (n = 172) groups (-52.2, -30.8, and -28.2 mL/y, respectively; P = .023 for FEV1 decline; -50.4, -28.8, and -26.0 mL/y, respectively; P = .002 for FVC decline). After adjusting for confounding factors, patients with treatment failure had greater FEV1 and FVC declines than did those observed without treatment (adjusted P = .026 for FEV1 decline; adjusted P = .022 for FVC decline) or those treated successfully (adjusted P = .004 for FEV1 decline; adjusted P = .002 for FVC decline). Patients treated successfully had declines in FEV1 and FVC similar to those in the observation group. CONCLUSIONS: The change of lung function was variable over a median 5-year follow-up period. Treatment failure was associated with a substantial decline in lung function in NTM-LD.

Clinical Utility of Additional Measurement of Total Lung Capacity in Diagnosing Obstructive Lung Disease in Subjects With Restrictive Pattern of Spirometry.

BACKGROUND: Total lung capacity (TLC), forced expiratory flow between 25 and 75% (FEF25-75%), peak expiratory flow (PEF), or post-bronchodilator volume response is recommended to detect obstructive abnormalities in the lung. The present study was performed to evaluate the usefulness of these pulmonary function test (PFT) parameters to diagnose obstructive lung disease in subjects with a restrictive pattern of spirometry. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted in 64 subjects with a restrictive pattern of spirometry (normal FEV1/FVC and low FVC) out of 3,030 patients who underwent all pre- and post-bronchodilator spirometry and lung volume measurement between April 2008 and December 2010. After subjects were clinically classified into those with obstructive lung disease, restrictive lung disease, and mixed lung disease, the agreements between the clinical diagnosis and PFT classification according to TLC, FEF(25-75%), PEF, and post-bronchodilator response criteria were compared. RESULTS: Of 64 subjects, 18 (28.1%) were classified with obstructive lung disease, 39 (60.9%) had restrictive lung disease, 1 (1.6%) had mixed lung disease, and 6 (9.4%) had no clinical lung disease. Among the 58 subjects with clinical lung disease, 22 (37.9%), 37 (63.8%), 33 (56.9%), and 3 (5.2%) were classified as having obstructive pattern based on TLC, FEF25-75%, PEF, and post-bronchodilator response criteria, respectively. The kappa coefficients for the agreement between the clinical classification and PFT classification using TLC, FEF25-75%, PEF, and post-bronchodilator response criteria in 58 subjects were 0.59, 0.18, 0.17, and < 0.01, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The additional measurement of TLC is more useful than FEF25-75%, PEF, and post-bronchodilator response for diagnosis of obstructive lung disease in subjects with a restrictive pattern of spirometry, when obstructive lung disease is clinically suspected.

The complex association of metabolic syndrome and its components with computed tomography-determined emphysema index.

BACKGROUND: Recent reports have suggested the association between emphysema and cardiovascular disease (CVD); however, there are few reports regarding association of emphysema severity with metabolic syndrome and its components representing CVD risk factors. METHODS: A retrospective cross-sectional study was performed in 2814 adult male subjects over age 40 who visited the Health Promotion Center in Samsung Medical Center for a health checkup program. RESULTS: We classified patients according to the quintiles of forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV1) and emphysema index (EI). FEV1 percentage predicted values (% pred) was inversely associated with prevalence of metabolic syndrome and most of its components, such as abdominal obesity, hypertension, fasting hyperglycemia, and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Although there was no association between prevalence of metabolic syndrome and EI, hypertension was positively associated with EI (P<0.001) and high triglycerides (TGs) were inversely associated with EI (P=0.021). These associations persisted after adjustment of other variables (P<0.001 in hypertension and P=0.039 in high TGs). CONCLUSION: The computed tomography-determined EI has a complex association with components of metabolic syndrome that is associated with increased prevalence of hypertension but decreased prevalence of high TGs, whereas FEV1 (% pred) has an inverse association with metabolic syndrome and most of its components with consistent direction.

Mycobacterium abscessus Lung Disease in a Patient with Kartagener Syndrome.

Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is characterized by the congenital impairment of mucociliary clearance. When accompanied by situs inversus, chronic sinusitis and bronchiectasis, PCD is known as Kartagener syndrome. The main consequence of impaired ciliary function is a reduced mucus clearance from the lungs, and susceptibility to chronic respiratory infections due to opportunistic pathogens, including nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM). There has been no report of NTM lung disease combined with Kartagener syndrome in Korea. Here, we report an adult patient with Kartagener syndrome complicated with Mycobacterium abscessus lung disease. A 37-year-old female presented to our hospital with chronic cough and sputum. She was ultimately diagnosed with M. abscessus lung disease and Kartagener syndrome. M. abscessus was repeatedly isolated from sputum specimens collected from the patient, despite prolonged antibiotic treatment. The patient's condition improved and negative sputum culture conversion was achieved after sequential bilateral pulmonary resection.