Carbon Footprint Reduction Associated With Multidisciplinary Pediatric Airway Clinics: A Program Evaluation Study.

Objective: Health care is a significant contributor to the climate crisis. Multidisciplinary clinics (MDC) may reduce carbon emissions by combining multiple appointments into one. This is the first program evaluation study to quantify the carbon footprint associated with multidisciplinary pediatric airway clinics. Study Design: Retrospective. Setting: Children's Hospital at London Health Sciences Center, London, Canada. Methods: Pediatric airway MDC allows patients to see otolaryngology and respirology in one appointment. The carbon and financial savings (Canadian Dollars) of all patients attending the MDC from January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2022 were calculated. Patient postal codes and institutional parking rates were inputted into the CASCADES carbon accounting tool. Total distance was divided into unsustainable (vehicles) and sustainable (transit, walking, cycling) transportation to calculate carbon emissions. Travel costs included cost/kilometer for vehicles (maintenance, license/registration, insurance, fuel) and costs/ride for transit. Results: A total of 560 MDC appointments for 300 patients saved 77,785 km. Total carbon emissions saved from travel averted was 16.21 tonnes. The total carbon emissions saved, minus public transit, was 15.60 tonnes. Using the Natural Resources Canada Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator, 16.21 tonnes are approximately equivalent to 5 passenger vehicles, 6906 L of gasoline, 3.8 homes' energy, and 10.8 homes' electricity use for one year, 36.6 barrels of oil consumed, and 675 propane cylinders. Travel costs of $28,891.83 (no parking), $30,519.40 ($4 minimum parking fee), or $33,774.55 ($12 maximum parking fee) were saved. Conclusion: MDC effectively reduced carbon emissions and offered patients financial savings. Similar models can be adapted across institutions to help mitigate climate change.

Drug Hypersensitivity Reactions in Patients with Cystic Fibrosis: Potential Value of the Lymphocyte Toxicity Assay to Assess Risk.

BACKGROUND: Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disease characterized by multi-system dysfunction resulting in recurrent lung infections and progressive pulmonary disease. CF patients are at a higher risk for drug hypersensitivity reactions (DHRs) compared to the general population, which has been attributed to the recurrent need for antibiotics and the inflammation associated with CF disease. In vitro toxicity tests such as the lymphocyte toxicity assay (LTA) offer the potential for risk assessment for DHRs. In the current study, we investigated the utility of the LTA test for diagnosis of DHRs in a cohort of CF patients. METHOD: Twenty CF patients with suspected DHRs to sulfamethoxazole, penicillins, cephalosporins, meropenem, vancomycin, rifampicin, and tobramycin were recruited to this study and tested using the LTA test along with 20 healthy control volunteers. Demographic data of the patients, including age, sex, and medical history, were obtained. Blood samples were withdrawn from patients and healthy volunteers, and the LTA test was performed on isolated peripheral blood monocytes (PBMCs) from those individuals. RESULTS: Cells from CF patients with DHRs displayed a significant (p < 0.0001) concentration-dependent enhanced cell death upon incubation with the culprit drug compared to cells from healthy volunteers. The positivity rate of the LTA test was over 80% in patients with a medical history and clinical presentation consistent with DHRs. CONCLUSION: This study is the first to evaluate the use of the LTA test for diagnosis of DHRs in CF patients. According to our results, the LTA test may be a useful tool for diagnosis and management of DHRs in CF patients. Identifying the culprit drug is essential for optimal healthcare for CF patients in the setting of a suspected DHR. The data also provide evidence that accumulation of toxic reactive metabolites could be an important component in the cascade of events leading to the development of DHRs in CF patients. A larger-scale study is needed to confirm the data.

The effect of gestational diabetes mellitus on the risk of asthma in offspring.

PURPOSE: To examine the effect of maternal gestational diabetes mellitus on the risk of asthma in the offspring. METHODS: This cohort study used data from 19,933 children in the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY), 1994/1995-2008/2009, Canada. Children were followed until the first-time report of having health professional-diagnosed asthma (hereafter incident asthma), loss to follow-up, or end of the NLSCY follow-up, whichever occurred first. As a surrogate for Cox proportional hazards regression, pooled logistic regression models, crude and adjusted for potential confounders, were fitted to estimate the effect of gestational diabetes mellitus on the risk of asthma in the offspring. RESULTS: Among the 19,933 children, 1,178 (5.9%) had mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus. The median duration of follow-up was 4 (interquartile range: 4) years. A total of 1639 children in the cohort had reported incident asthma during the follow-up, and 119 of them had mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus. The adjusted hazard ratio for the association between gestational diabetes mellitus and incident asthma in offspring was 1.25 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.03, 1.51). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that gestational diabetes mellitus increases the risk of asthma in the offspring.

Age, period, and cohort effects on asthma prevalence in Canadian adults, 1994-2011.

PURPOSE: To examine the age, period, and cohort effects on asthma prevalence among Canadian adults from 1994/1995 to 2010/2011. METHODS: Using data from the National Population Health Survey, 13,616 Canadian adults were followed for 16 years. Age was limited to 18-80 years during follow-up. Modified Poisson regression models with generalized estimating equations were used to estimate age, period, and cohort effects on asthma and active asthma prevalence after accounting for sociodemographic factors. Model-based standardization was performed to estimate standardized rates. RESULTS: Overall asthma prevalence increased from 5% in 1994/1995 to 11% in 2010/2011; decreasing from 12% for 20-year-olds to 6% for 50-60-year-olds and then increased to 8% for 80-year-olds. Individuals aged 20 years had the steepest increase in prevalence between 1994/1995 and 2010/2011. Active asthma prevalence increased from 5% in 1994/1995 to 8% in 2010/2011; decreasing from 8% for 20-year-olds to 5% for 50-60-year-olds and then increased to 6% for 80-year-olds. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest the presence of age, period, and cohort effects on prevalence of asthma overall and presence of age and period effects on active asthma prevalence in Canadian adults.

Asthma exacerbation trajectories and their predictors in children with incident asthma.

BACKGROUND: Asthma exacerbation trajectories in children after incident asthma diagnosis are understudied. OBJECTIVE: To identify trajectories of asthma exacerbation and predictors of these trajectories in children with incident asthma. METHODS: Children from the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth, Canada, with incident asthma were followed-up for up to 12 years during childhood. Latent class growth modeling was used to identify distinct asthma exacerbation trajectory groups. Multinomial logistic regression was performed to identify predictors of trajectory group membership. RESULTS: The mean age at asthma diagnosis among 403 children was 5.9 years. Three distinct trajectories were identified: low increasing (21.3% of children), medium decreasing (45.8% of children), and high decreasing (32.8% of children). Asthma attack probability increased gradually after diagnosis in low increasing group, decreased from moderate level after diagnosis to almost zero probability at the end of follow-up in the medium decreasing group, and decreased after diagnosis but remained higher in the high decreasing group than the other 2 groups at 12 years after diagnosis. Children having more siblings at home were more likely to belong to the medium decreasing and high decreasing trajectory groups, whereas children older at asthma diagnosis were less likely to belong to the medium decreasing and high decreasing trajectory groups than the low increasing trajectory group. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that children with incident asthma follow 3 distinct trajectories of asthma exacerbations after asthma diagnosis. The trajectory group with initial moderate exacerbation probability has better long-term prognosis.

Primary ciliary dyskinesia and neonatal respiratory distress.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is a rare inherited disease affecting motile cilia lining the respiratory tract. Despite neonatal respiratory distress as an early feature, diagnosis is typically delayed until late childhood. Our objective was to identify characteristics that differentiate PCD from common causes of term neonatal respiratory distress. METHODS: This was a case-control study. Patients with PCD born after 1994 attending a regional PCD clinic who had a history of neonatal respiratory distress (n = 46) were included. Controls (n = 46), term neonates with respiratory distress requiring a chest radiograph, were randomly selected from hospital birth records and matched on gender, birth month/year, and mode of delivery. Multiple logistic regression was used to determine the association between neonatal characteristics and PCD diagnosis. The diagnostic performance of the best predictive variables was estimated by calculating sensitivity and specificity. RESULTS: PCD cases required more oxygen therapy (39 cases, 29 controls, P = .01), longer duration of oxygen therapy (PCD mean = 15.2 days, control mean = 0.80 days, P < .01), had later onset of neonatal respiratory distress (PCD median = 12 hours, control median = 1 hour, P < .001), and higher frequency of lobar collapse and situs inversus (PCD = 70% and 48% respectively, control = 0% for both, P < .001). Situs inversus, lobar collapse, or oxygen need for >2 days had 87% (95% confidence interval: 74-94) sensitivity and 96% (95% confidence interval: 85-99) specificity for PCD. CONCLUSIONS: When encountering term neonates with unexplained respiratory distress, clinicians should consider PCD in those with lobar collapse, situs inversus, and/or prolonged oxygen therapy (>2 days).