IN OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA (OSA), REPETITIVE COLLAPSE OF THE UPPER AIRWAY DURING SLEEP RESULTS IN MULTIPLE EPISODES OF HYPOXEMIA AND subsequent repetitive arousals that fragment sleep. These events and the associated autonomic and neurohumoral disturbances are considered to lead to the many symptoms and signs of OSA and contribute to the long-term morbidity.1,2 The repetitive arousals are a dom...

Concept of asthma has changed from symptom-complex or airway hypersensitivity to airway inflammation and airway remodeling. Based on this concept asthma management guidelines (JGL) has been developed in Japan. Death from asthma has decreased drastically since the publication of the guidelines, although it is still high in elderly population. Further works are expected for "zero-death" from asth...

  Background and Objectives: Apoptosis of eosinophils is of significant value in assessing the airway inflammation in patients with asthma. Our purpose was to investigate the degree of expression of the Bcl-2 protein in sputum eosinophils during acute asthma exacerbation and its relationship with exacerbation severity.    Materials and Methods: The study was carried out in Mostafa Khomeini Ho...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The oropharyngeal airways are smaller in those who snore than in those who do not. We sought to determine which soft-tissue component surrounding the airways contributes to upper airway narrowing in those who snore. METHODS Ten control subjects and 19 snoring patients underwent CT, with 2-mm-thick axial sections obtained every 0.6 seconds during the respiration cycle at...

BACKGROUND Acetaldehyde is an endocrine-disrupting chemical (EDC) and a volatile organic compound (VOC). It is also a carcinogen and teratogen that causes bronchoconstriction in a subset of asthmatics. However, the mechanism through which acetaldehyde acts as an EDC/VOC causing allergic airway inflammation remains unknown. OBJECTIVES To determine the effects of a low concentration of acetalde...