Randomised placebo-controlled crossover trial on effect of inactivated influenza vaccine on pulmonary function in asthma.

BACKGROUND: Despite current recommendations, many people with asthma do not receive annual vaccination against influenza, partly because of concern that vaccine may trigger exacerbations. Colds can trigger exacerbations, which may be mistaken for vaccine-related adverse events. We undertook a double-blind placebo-controlled multicentre crossover study to assess the safety of influenza vaccine in patients with asthma, with allowance for the occurrence of colds. METHODS: We studied 262 patients, aged 18-75 years, who recorded daily peak expiratory flow (PEF), respiratory symptoms, medication, medical consultations, and hospital admissions for 2 weeks before the first injection and until 2 weeks after the second injection. Order of injection (vaccine and placebo) was assigned randomly. There was an interval of 2 weeks between injections. The main outcome measure was an exacerbation of asthma within 72 h of injection (defined as a fall in PEF of >20%). FINDINGS: Among 255 participants with paired data, 11 recorded a fall in PEF of more than 20% after vaccine compared with three after placebo (McNemar's test p=0.06); a fall of more than 30% was recorded by eight after vaccine compared with none after placebo (binomial test p=0.008). However, when participants with colds were excluded, there was no significant difference in the numbers with falls of more than 20% between vaccine and placebo (six vs three; binomial test p=0.51), although the difference for PEF decreases of more than 30% approached significance (five vs none; binomial test, p=0.06). This association was confined to first-time vaccinees. INTERPRETATION: Our findings indicate that pulmonary-function abnormalities may occur as a complication of influenza vaccination. However, the risk of pulmonary complications is very small and outweighed by the benefits of vaccination.

Etoposide compared with the combination of vincristine, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide in the treatment of small cell lung cancer.

One hundred and three patients with small cell lung carcinoma were stratified according to stage of disease (47 limited disease, 56 extensive disease) and then randomised to receive etoposide 300 mg/m2 alone for two days or a combination (VAC) of vincristine 1 mg/m2, doxorubicin (Adriamycin) 50 mg/m2, and cyclophosphamide 1000 mg/m2. The drugs were given at three week intervals. Patients were assessed after three cycles of treatment and continued with the same regimen if in complete remission and with the alternative regimen if in partial remission; they were withdrawn if the disease had progressed. Twenty four patients (23%) achieved complete remission and this occurred more often when patients were receiving VAC (19 of 82) than etoposide (5 of 75). There was no difference, however, in overall survival between those initially treated with etoposide and those having combination chemotherapy, whether for limited disease (both 8 months) or extensive disease (7 and 5.5 months). Toxicity was less with etoposide. Survival was disappointing, especially with limited disease, even in patients who showed a complete response to treatment.

Lung cancer, immune thrombocytopenia and the lupus inhibitor.

This case report describes the simultaneous occurrence of autoimmune thrombocytopenia and the lupus anticoagulant in a patient with primary adenocarcinoma of the bronchus. Treatment with corticosteroids and plasmapheresis resulted in a return to normal of the partial thromboplastin time and the disappearance of the platelet antibodies. The carcinoma was inoperable.

Comparison of oral prednisolone and intramuscular depot triamcinolone in patients with severe chronic asthma.

In a double blind crossover study oral prednisolone was compared with intramuscular depot triamcinolone in the treatment of 20 patients with severe chronic asthma. A short term study comparing each treatment over four weeks showed only minor differences in therapeutic efficacy, but at the end of 24 week periods on each of the two treatments triamcinolone was significantly more effective than prednisolone in terms of forced expiratory volume in one second and forced vital capacity. Better control of asthma was accompanied by a significant fall in weight and some evidence of reduced adrenal suppression (improved cortisol response following a short tetracosactrin test). Side effects, including menstrual irregularities, muscle pain, and hirsuitism, were, however, more common during treatment with triamcinolone.

Nebulized salbutamol in life-threatening asthma: is IPPB necessary?

A double-blind crossover trial compared equal doses of nebulized salbutamol delivered with and without intermittent positive pressure breathing (IPPB) in 20 patients admitted to hospital with life-threatening asthma. No significant differences were observed between the two forms of treatment. It was concluded that the use of IPPB to administer nebulized salbutamol in oxygen had no advantage over passive inhalation in the initial treatment of patients with severe acute asthma.

Unusual pulmonary reactions to oily propyliodone (Dionosil) in bronchography.

Severe reactions to oily propyliodone are rare. Side-effects are usually mild and self-limiting. Three cases are reported of early pulmonary reactions, the cause of which may be a chemical pneumonitis or possibly an allergic response to one of the components of the contrast medium. There was a good response to corticosteroid therapy in all three patients.

Rigid bronchoscopy under intravenous general anaesthesia with oxygen Venturi ventilation.

In a study of 100 patients undergoing rigid bronchoscopy under intravenous general anaesthesia with oxygen Venturi ventilation no major complications were observed. Minor complications included one adverse reaction to alphaxalone-alphadolone acetate (Althesin), one prolonged episode of laryngeal spasm after removal of the bronchoscope, and subsequent muscle pain attributed to suxamethonium in 36 patients. The last complication occurred significantly less frequently (p less than 0 . 025) in those patients who were pretreated with a small dose of a non-depolarising neuromuscular blocking agent. Serial arterial blood gas sampling in 10 patients showed adequate ventilation during bronchoscopy, but carbon dioxide retention developed in nine cases immediately after the bronchoscope was withdrawn. With adequate precautions, however, the procedure is safe and well tolerated, even in patients with severe impairment of respiratory function.

Comparison of twice daily administration of a new corticosteroid budesonide with beclomethasone dipropionate four times daily in the treatment of chronic asthma.

The efficacy and side-effects of a new corticosteroid aerosol, budesonide and beclomethasone dipropionate were assessed in 30 patients with chronic asthma in a double-blind cross-over study. Budesonide was administered, 200 micrograms twice daily, from a conventional pressurized aerosol with a tube spacer extension attached and beclomethasone was given via a conventional inhaler in the recommended four times daily dose of 100 micrograms, each treatment being administered for one month. No clinically significant differences were found between the two treatments and no significant side-effects were observed.

Twice daily inhalation of a new corticosteroid, budesonide, in the treatment of chronic asthma.

The efficacy and side-effects of a new corticosteroid, budesonide, was assessed by comparison with beclomethasone dipropionate in double-blind, cross-over study of 30 patients with chronic asthma. The treatment regimens were budesonide 200 micrograms twice daily by conventional pressurized aerosol with a tube spacer attached and beclomethasone 100 micrograms four times daily via a conventional inhaler. Each treatment was given for four weeks. Results were analyzed using Student's t-test for paired comparisons. No significant differences were found for morning and evening peak flow rates, symptom scores, bronchodilator inhaler usage or forced vital capacity. Forced expiratory volume in one second after 4 weeks on each treatment was significantly higher following budesonide therapy (p less than 0.05), but the absolute changes were small and unlikely to be of clinical relevance. There were no major side-effects during either treatment period, but compared with pre-treatment levels serum creatinine and lactic dehydrogenase levels rose significantly during treatment with budesonide (p less than 0.01 and p less than 0.05 respectively). None of these results reflected clinically important biochemical or haematological changes. There was a significant reduction in neutrophil counts following treatment with beclomethasone (p less than 0.05). In the short term treatment of chronic asthma, budesonide administered twice daily is as effective as four times daily beclomethasone. A twice daily dosage regimen should improve patient compliance with therapy.

An unusual case of large right atrial myxoma.

A case of right atrial myxoma is described. The patient had vague and variable symptoms and it was not until five years after first presentation that she had developed clinical and electrocardiographic evidence of right atrial hypertrophy, and angiocardiographic evidence of a fist-sized myxoma which was subsequently removed surgically.

Partial anomalous pulmonary venous drainage in two patients with Turner's syndrome.

We report two cases of partial anomalous pulmonary venous drainage in a series of 135 patients with Turner's syndrome.

Chronic cryptic Q-fever infection of the heart.

Evidence of chronic Coxiella burneti infection of the heart, a disease previously considered peculiar to patients with valvular heart-disease, was found in a patient during routine serological tests before resection of a ventricular aneurysm and also by isolation of the rickettsia from the resected tissue. The patient had no symptoms or signs of Q-fever endocarditis and none of the laboratory evidence usually associated with it.

A comparison of ampicillin, erythromycin and erythromycin with sulphametopyrazine in the treatment of infective exacerbations of chronic bronchitis.

A comparative study of ampicillin (500 mg four times daily), erythromycin (500 mg four times daily) and sulphametopyrazine (1 g at start of exacerbation) followed by erythromycin (500 mg four times daily) was carried out in infective exacerbations of chronic bronchitis. Ampicillin and erythromycin were found to be equally effective, but the combination of erythromycin and sulphametopyrazine was significantly less effective. Unwanted effects were more frequent with ampicillin and with erythromycin plus sulphametopyrazine than with erythromycin alone.

Further studies of rimiterol and salbutamol administered by intermittent positive-pressure ventilation, and an important observation on the technique of using the Bennett ventilator.

1. Using the same technique of administering drugs by intermittent positive-pressure ventilation as used in previous studies a source of contamination of solutions nebulized was discovered. This was rectified by using a new ventilator and completely separate patient circuits for each solution nebulized. 2 Salbutamol 0.5% and 0.25% solutions achieved the same degree of bronchodilatation, but there was a significantly greater increase in heart rate produced by salbutamol 0.5%. 3 Rimiterol 0.5% and salbutamol 0.25% produced similar peak mean improvements in FEV and also induced the same degree of tachycardia, but the duration of these effects were significantly shorter in the case of rimiterol. 4 The sustained degree of bronchodilatation achieved by salbutamol 0.25% could not be mirrored by giving two doses of rimiterol 0.5%, the second dose 2 h after the first. 5 Rimiterol 0.5% induced a degree of tachycardia which was similar in peak effect to that observed after salbutamol 0.25%. However, in the controls the second dose of rimiterol, given 2 h after the first, was responsible for only a small increase in heart rate which was not significantly different than that after saline in the other three treatment groups.