Lung infection tests

Bill has smoked for 45 years and has a chronic, productive cough. He is now very short of breath. He first noticed this when he was walking uphill, but now he is short of breath walking on the flat. In the last few years, he has had a couple of chest infections, which were successfully treated with antibiotics. His doctor prescribed an inhaler last year but it made little difference to his breathing. Bill s latest lung function test is shown below. 

Q3 Chandra has suffered recurrent chest infections for three years and has had a chronic cough with sputum production during this time. Although he is not a smoker, he has been exposed to occupational dusts in the mining industry, which is known to be associated with development of COPD. His lung function test results are consistent with this diagnosis (see Part 2 of the case study). 

Cystic Fibrosis. Diagnosis Individuals with cystic fibrosis can be diagnosed before birth by genetic testing or by a sweat test in early childhood [37, 51]. Treatment There is no cure for cystic fibrosis. CF patients often suffer from lung infections with thick sticky mucus formation in the lungs, dehydration, diabetes, blockage in the intestines and lose of appetite. Treatment of cystic fibrosis aims to prevent the complications associated with the disease [37, 51]. 

Several portable inhalation devices have been developed and are being tested to determine whether they improve protein and peptide delivery via the airways. Aerosolized DNase has been shown in patients with cystic flbrosis to significantly reduce the buildup of mucus in the lung and the incidence of infections. Devices for delivery of therapeutic proteins to deep-lung alveoli to achieve systemic effects are also in development. These products are formulated so that the device aerosolizes the protein in a defined particle size range that cannot be easily achieved by means of conventional metered dose inhalers. 

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