Pulmonologist Education of the Teach-to-Goal Inhaler Technique for Those With Asthma and COPD.

BACKGROUND: Inhaler education for patients with asthma and patients with COPD is typically provided by non-pulmonologists. We studied inhaler education by pulmonologists to determine changes in clinical outcomes and inhaler use. METHODS: This was a retrospective study of 296 subjects diagnosed with asthma, COPD, or both that evaluated use of inhaler technique education and its impact on (1) inhaler/dosage change consisting of dosage change in the same class of inhaler and/or change in number of inhalers, (2) forced expiratory volume in one second/forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC%), (3) disease symptom control, (4) out-patient visits, (5) urgent care visits (6) emergency department visits, and (7) hospital admissions. One group received inhaler technique education by a pulmonologist while the other group did not. RESULTS: The pulmonologist inhaler technique-educated group had significantly decreased relative risk for inhaler/dosage increase (relative risk 0.57 [95% CI 0.34-0.96], P = .03) and significantly increased odds for symptom control (odds ratio 2.15 [95% CI 1.24-3.74], P = .01) at 1-y follow-up as compared to the no education group. No differences occurred for FEV1/FVC%, out-patient visits, urgent care visits, emergency department visits, and hospital admissions. CONCLUSIONS: Pulmonologist education of inhaler technique for patients with asthma and patients with COPD was associated with decreased relative risk for inhaler/dosage increase and increased odds for symptom control. We recommend pulmonologists provide education of inhaler technique to patients with asthma and patients with COPD and not rely on non-pulmonologist education alone. Prospective research is needed to confirm the importance of proper inhaler techniques.

Navigating the Esophagus: Effective Strategies for Foreign Body Removal.

Foreign body ingestion is a common medical emergency that can affect individuals of all ages and can be caused by various factors, including accidental ingestion, psychiatric disorders, intellectual disabilities, and substance abuse. The most common site for foreign body lodgment is the upper esophagus, followed by the middle esophagus, stomach, pharynx, lower esophagus, and duodenum. This article provides a case report of a 43-year-old male patient with a history of schizoaffective disorder and an indwelling suprapubic catheter who presented to the hospital due to foreign body ingestion. After examination, a metal clip from his Foley catheter was found lodged in his esophagus. The patient was intubated for the procedure, and an emergent endoscopic removal was performed to remove the metallic Foley component. No postoperative complications were observed, and the patient was successfully discharged. This case highlights the importance of considering foreign body ingestion in patients with chest pain, dysphagia, and vomiting. Prompt diagnosis and treatment are crucial to prevent potential complications such as perforation or gastrointestinal tract obstruction. The article also emphasizes the need for healthcare providers to know the different risk factors, variations, and common sites for foreign body lodgment to optimize patient care. Furthermore, the article highlights the importance of multidisciplinary care involving psychiatry and surgery to provide comprehensive care to patients with psychiatric disorders who may be at higher risk for foreign body ingestion. In conclusion, foreign body ingestion is a typical medical emergency that requires prompt diagnosis and treatment to prevent complications. This case report highlights the successful management of a patient with foreign body ingestion and emphasizes the importance of multidisciplinary care to optimize patient outcomes.

A False-Positive HIV Test: Severe Lupus Flare in Disguise.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection have significant overlapping clinical features, making diagnosis challenging. We report a case of new-onset SLE initially mistreated as HIV infection due to a false-positive fourth-generation HIV antigen/antibody (Ag/Ab) test. A young female in her 30s presented with fatigue, oral thrush, and a positive HIV Ag/Ab combo test. She was started on fluconazole and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), but deteriorated with recurrent fevers and worsening mental status, requiring ICU admission. Surprisingly, her HIV confirmatory tests were negative, but rheumatologic serologies were positive. The overall clinical, laboratory and biopsy results confirmed the diagnosis of SLE. She was treated with pulse steroid therapy and immunosuppressive agents with marked improvement and was subsequently discharged. Rarely do SLE patients present with false-positive HIV tests, thus masking and delaying treatment for critical SLE. Clinicians should understand the limitations of screening tests and have high suspicions and consider the diagnoses of both diseases.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients' experience using Trelegy as compared with other inhalers.

Introduction: Trelegy is a combination inhaler that is often reported to offer benefits over multiple inhalers. We compared Trelegy use with multiple inhalers for adherence, symptoms, medication beliefs, and medication attitudes. Methods: This cross-sectional survey of 58 patients compared the patient's experience with Trelegy (n = 18) versus any other inhaler (n = 40). Outcome variables consisted of Test of the Adherence to Inhalers scale, the Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Assessment Test (CAT) scale, attitude items from the St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire, the Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire (BMQ)-necessity subscale, and the BMQ-concerns subscale. Results: We found that patients using Trelegy had greater CAT symptoms (M = 19.8, SD = 7.75) in comparison with the any other inhaler group (M = 15.7, SD = 11.10; P = 0.04). We did not find any difference between the groups for adherence or any of the medication attitudes or beliefs. CAT score was positively correlated with the number of months patients were on their current inhaler (r s = 0.29, P < 0.05) and their use of a rescue inhaler (r s = 0.42, P < 0.01). Patients with more concern about their medications were negatively correlated with the use of a rescue inhaler (r s = -0.31, P < 0.05). Discussion: We found that patients using Trelegy had greater symptoms in comparison with the any other inhaler group, but did not differ for adherence, medication attitudes, or medication beliefs. Conclusion: We recommend that clinicians should regularly re-evaluate their Trelegy recommendations, as Trelegy use may not be the best therapy for certain patients. Also, a study with a larger sample size can be beneficial to confirm these findings.

"Feeling the Blues": A Case of Calcium Channel Blocker Overdose Managed With Methylene Blue.

Amlodipine is a dihydropyridine calcium channel blocker (CCB) commonly used to treat hypertension. In the United States, approximately 9,500 cases of CCB intoxication due to deliberate or inadvertent overdose were reported to poison centers in 2002. We present a case of a patient who presented with CCB overdose complicated by acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and recalcitrant shock all of which resolved with methylene blue therapy. We present a case of a 56-year-old African American woman who presented to the emergency department (ED) after intentional ingestion of large amounts of multiple pills likely consisting of cyclobenzaprine, amlodipine, losartan, and ibuprofen following an argument with her boyfriend. Treatment included insulin drip, 10% dextrose, and norepinephrine drip which was titrated up. First insulin drip and 10% dextrose were titrated up; however, vasopressor-resistant hypotension persisted, and the decision was made to administer methylene blue. Over 9,500 cases of CCB toxicity were reported to poison centers in the US in 2002. Although no definitive treatment is outlined, first-line therapy consists of IV calcium, high-dose insulin, and vasopressor support with either norepinephrine or epinephrine. Traditionally, methylene blue is used for methemoglobinemia and in cardiothoracic ICUs for post coronary artery bypass vasoplegia. It acts by selectively inhibiting nitric oxide-activated cyclic guanylate cyclase leading to decreased vasodilation of arteriolar smooth muscles improving vascular tone and systemic vascular resistance. In severe amlodipine overdose, experimental models demonstrate methylene blue improves HR and mean arterial pressure (MAP), improving survival rate. With few adverse side effects (green-tinged discoloration of urine, saliva, tears, and bodily fluids), methylene blue should be explored and implemented in the treatment of CCB overdose with refractory hypotension and ARDS.

CMV Pancreatitis in an Immunocompromised Patient.

INTRODUCTION: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a common double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) virus affecting a large majority of the world's population. In immunocompetent patients, CMV infection can range anywhere from an asymptomatic course to mononucleosis. However, in the immunocompromised patient, prognosis can be deadly as CMV can disseminate to the retina, liver, lungs, heart, and GI tract. We present a case of CMV pancreatitis afflicting an immunocompromised patient. Case Summary. A 45-year-old Hispanic female with no past medical history presented to the emergency department (ED) for three days of abdominal pain associated with nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. ED vitals showed a sepsis picture with fever, tachycardia, low white blood cell (WBC) count with bandemia, and CT scan showing acute pancreatitis, cholelithiasis, gastritis, and colitis. The patient denied alcohol use and MRCP showed no stone impaction. Sepsis protocolled was initiated for biliary pancreatitis, and the patient was admitted to the medicine floors with appropriate consulting services. Over the course of admission, the patient responded poorly to treatment and had a steady decline in respiratory status. She tested positive for HIV with a severely depressed CD4 count (42 cells/McL) and high viral load (1,492,761 copies/ml) and started on appropriate prophylactic antibiotics and HAART therapy. The patient was moved to the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) after acute respiratory failure secondary to ARDS requiring mechanical ventilation with initiation of ARDS protocol. The patient was hemodynamically unstable and required vasopressor support. Hospital course was complicated by melena which prompted an esophagogastroduodenostomy (EGD) with biopsy yielding CMV gastritis. Serum CMV viral load was also found to be positive along with an elevated lipase level, indicative of pancreatitis. Despite initiation of ganciclovir, the patient continued to have refractory hypoxia despite full ventilatory support and proning. Unfortunately, the patient was deemed too unstable for transfer to an ECMO facility. She eventually succumbed to respiratory failure. Discussion. CMV is a Herpesviridae virus that is prevalent among more than half of the world's population. Its effects range from no presenting symptoms to respiratory failure depending on immune status. CMV more commonly affects the retina, lungs, liver, and GI tract; however, in rare cases, it is known to affect the pancreas as well. Other more common causes of pancreatitis were ruled out during the progression of this patient, and an elevated lipase with high CMV viral load points towards CMV pancreatitis. CONCLUSION: This is one of only a few reported cases of CMV pancreatitis and warrants further study due to the massive prevalence of CMV in the entire world's population. Our case demonstrates the extent of dissemination of CMV in a severely immunocompromised patient by showing clear cut pancreatitis secondary to said viral infection with exclusion of other possible causes. Our hope is that clinicians will change their practice to include a more scrutinized study into causes of pancreatitis especially in their immunocompromised patients.

COVID-19 and Spontaneous Pneumomediastinum: A case series.

COVID-19 is a relatively new and rapidly emerging disease. Given current knowledge of the disease process, it is of the utmost importance to gain further insight into its different clinical manifestations. In this report we describe three cases involving Hispanic males with COVID-19 all of whom developed pneumomediastinum during their hospital course. We want to emphasize the importance of this adverse event despite their non-smoking history and the exclusion of positive pressure ventilation. Frequent chest radiographs help with early recognition of this disease process. Early detection of pneumomediastinum is important as this could lead to worse morbidity if left unrecognized despite its usually benign nature.

Rapidly developing large pneumatocele and spontaneous pneumothorax in SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread to more than 70 countries around the world since its discovery in 2019. More than 2.5 million cases and more than 130,000 deaths have been reported in the United States alone. The common radiological presentation in this disease is noted to be the presence of ground glass opacities and/or consolidations. We report a case of 40-year-old male admitted for COVID-19 and rapidly deteriorated into severe acute respiratory distress syndrome requiring intubation and mechanical ventilation with no prior history of smoking or lung disease. The patient had normal imaging 3 days prior to admission to the hospital and rapidly developed a large pneumatocele with pneumothorax requiring chest tube placement that later on resolved. This is a unique radiologic finding in COVID-19 and likely related to severe inflammation secondary to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Usefulness of PA32540 in Protecting the Gastric Layer While Providing Secondary Prevention for Coronary Artery Disease.

Aspirin has been the mainstay for secondary prevention of coronary artery disease to decrease early recurrence and severity of recurrent cardiovascular events. However, an increase in gastrointestinal bleeding due to aspirin is preventing many patients from adhering to this daily regimen. PA32540, a combination pill with aspirin and omeprazole, is a newly emerging intervention that has the potential to reinforce patient compliance with the aspirin regimen due to fewer gastrointestinal adverse effects. This systematic review assessed three recent phase 3 clinical trials investigating the safety and efficacy of PA32540. Clinical trials were chosen based on inclusion criteria such as phase 3, randomized, open-label or blinded studies, utilization of enteric-coated aspirin 325 mg dose, and measured GI adverse effects and major adverse cardiac events (MACE) as primary outcomes. Study A, a 6-month phase-3 study by Whellan et al., used two identically designed, randomized, double-blind trials to compare the GI adverse events and MACE after the use of PA32540 to 325mg of enteric coated Aspirin (EC-ASA) in subjects at risk for aspirin-associated gastric ulcers. Results showed fewer upper GI symptoms, decreased size of ulcers, and improved heartburn symptoms in subjects receiving PA32540 compared to EC-ASA. Study B, a 12-month phase-3 study by Hatoum et al., assessed secondary cardiovascular event prevention in a study population that was treated with PA32540 in comparison to a community setting (CS) group that was started on a standard antiplatelet treatment. Results indicated a 28% reduction of CV events in subjects treated with PA32540 compared to the CS group. Study C, a phase-3 open-label study by Goldstein et al., evaluating secondary prevention of cardiovascular/cerebrovascular events with the use of PA32450 for 12 months found that none of the 12-month completers were reported to have new-onset gastric ulcers. In conclusion, PA32540 could be an effective therapy for secondary prevention of coronary artery disease as studies are showing similar efficacy in preventing MACE with reduced GI side effects.