Letter
Allergy
Sarah Abbassi, Eugenio Capitle, Radhika Trivedi, Alan H. Wolff
Summary: This study is the first to investigate the association between air pollution markers and nasal microbiota, considering multiple socioeconomic factors. Data was obtained from reputable governmental sources. Results suggest some correlations in the nasal microbiota.
ANNALS OF ALLERGY ASTHMA & IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Pediatrics
Alexandros N. Zounas, Ioannis Giannakopoulos, Panagiotis Lampropoulos, Aggeliki Vervenioti, Eleana-Georgia Koliofoti, Styliani Malliori, Kostas N. Priftis, Gabriel Dimitriou, Michael B. Anthracopoulos, Sotirios Fouzas
Summary: The prevalence of childhood wheeze/asthma has significantly decreased over the past decade in Greece. The persistent and noncurrent wheeze/asthma groups followed the overall trend, while the recent-onset wheeze/asthma prevalence remained unchanged. Physicians and parents' changing perceptions of asthma may have contributed to this reversing trend, especially in younger children with troublesome respiratory symptoms.
PEDIATRIC PULMONOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Respiratory System
Subhabrata Moitra, Anne-Elie Carsin, Michael J. Abramson, Simone Accordini, Andre F. S. Amaral, Josep Anto, Roberto Bono, Lidia Casas Ruiz, Isa Cerveri, Leda Chatzi, Pascal Demoly, Sandra Dorado-Arenas, Bertil Forsberg, Frank Gilliland, Thorarinn Gislason, Jose A. Gullon, Joachim Heinrich, Mathias Holm, Christer Janson, Rain Jogi, Francisco Gomez Real, Debbie Jarvis, Benedicte Leynaert, Dennis Nowak, Nicole Probst-Hensch, Jose Luis Sanchez-Ramos, Chantal Raherison-Semjen, Valerie Siroux, Stefano Guerra, Manolis Kogevinas, Judith Garcia-Aymerich
Summary: This study is the first to show that adults with asthma have a higher risk of developing obesity compared to those without asthma, especially among non-atopic individuals, those with longer disease duration, or those taking oral corticosteroids.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Luyu Xie, Andrew Gelfand, Caitlin C. Murphy, M. Sunil Mathew, Folefac Atem, George L. Delclos, Sarah Messiah
Summary: This study examined the prevalence of polypharmacy and its adverse outcomes in US children with asthma. The results showed that one in three children with asthma experienced polypharmacy, which increased the odds of asthma attacks and emergency department visits.
Article
Respiratory System
Bright Nwaru, Holly Tibble, Syed A. Shah, Rebecca Pillinger, Susannah McLean, Dermot P. Ryan, Hilary Critchley, David B. Price, Catherine M. Hawrylowicz, Colin R. Simpson, Ireneous N. Soyiri, Francis Appiagyei, Aziz Sheikh
Summary: The study found that the use of hormonal contraceptives may reduce the risk of severe asthma exacerbation in reproductive-age women with asthma, and longer duration of use was associated with better outcomes.
Article
Respiratory System
Hanna Creese, Eric Lai, Kate Mason, Daniela K. Schlueter, Sejal Saglani, David Taylor-Robinson, Sonia Saxena
Summary: The study found through causal mediation analysis that perinatal characteristics and early home environment factors are more important in explaining socioeconomic inequalities in persistent asthma in British adolescents.
Editorial Material
Respiratory System
Juho E. Kivisto, Jennifer L. P. Protudjer, Jussi Karjalainen, Anna Bergstrom, Heini Huhtala, Matti Korppi, Erik Melen
Summary: We examined the incidence of paediatric asthma hospitalisations in Finland and Sweden from 2015 to 2020. The results showed a significant decrease in hospitalisations in both countries, with Finland experiencing a 36.7% decrease and Sweden a 39.9% decrease from 2015 to 2019. Despite differences in COVID-19-related restrictions, asthma hospitalisations decreased by over 40% in 2020, indicating the need for further research.
Article
Respiratory System
Marion Keirsbulck, Marine Savoure, Emeline Lequy, Jie Chen, Kees de Hoogh, Danielle Vienneau, Marcel Goldberg, Marie Zins, Nicolas Roche, Rachel Nadif, Benedicte Jacquemin
Summary: This study investigated the associations between PM2.5, black carbon, and NO2 exposure and asthma symptom score in adults. The results showed that each pollutant was associated with an increase in asthma symptom score.
Article
Respiratory System
Robert J. Maidstone, James Turner, Celine Vetter, Hassan S. Dashti, Richa Saxena, Frank A. J. L. Scheer, Steven A. Shea, Simon D. Kyle, Deborah A. Lawlor, Andrew S. Loudon, John F. Blaikley, Martin K. Rutter, David W. Ray, Hannah Jane Durrington
Summary: Shift work, especially night shifts, is associated with a higher likelihood of moderate-severe asthma. Individuals who engage in any type of shift work also have a higher risk of wheeze/whistling in the chest. Additionally, morning chronotypes working irregular shifts, including nights, are at an increased risk of moderate-severe asthma.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Cristina Jacome, Dinis Brito, Catarina Joao, Filipa Lopes, Janete Santos, Liliana Amorim, Maria Joao Barbosa, Marisa Pardal, Pedro Teixeira, Filipa Bernardo, Joao A. Fonseca, Jaime Correia-de-Sousa
Summary: This study aims to determine the prevalence of asthma, difficult-to-treat asthma, and severe asthma in mainland Portugal, and to evaluate the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of these patients. The study will be conducted in primary care centers using a multicenter stepwise approach. Data will be collected through telephone interviews, diagnostic visits, and follow-up evaluations.
Review
Sport Sciences
Oliver J. Price, Nicola Sewry, Martin Schwellnus, Vibeke Backer, Tonje Reier-Nilsen, Valerie Bougault, Lars Pedersen, Bruno Chenuel, Kjell Larsson, James H. Hull
Summary: The prevalence of lower airway dysfunction in athletes is approximately 21.8%, with the highest rates seen in elite endurance athletes, aquatic athletes, and winter-based athletes. Further research is needed to understand the causality and develop preventative strategies.
BRITISH JOURNAL OF SPORTS MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Respiratory System
Hellen Meme, Evans Amukoye, Cressida Bowyer, Jeremiah Chakaya, Darpan Das, Ruaraidh Dobson, Ulrike Dragosits, Jonathan Fuld, Cindy Gray, Matthew Hahn, Richard Kiplimo, Maia Lesosky, Miranda M. Loh, Jean McKendree, Kevin Mortimer, Amos Ndombi, Louis Netter, Angela Obasi, Fred Orina, Clare Pearson, Heather Price, Jennifer K. Quint, Sean Semple, Marsailidh Twigg, Charlotte Waelde, Anna Walnycki, Melaneia Warwick, Jana Wendler, Sarah E. West, Michael Wilson, Lindsay Zurba, Graham Devereux
Summary: Research found that children living in informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya are more likely to have asthma symptoms, which are more severe and less likely to be diagnosed as asthma. Self-reported exposure to air pollution is associated with increased risk of asthma symptoms.
Article
Respiratory System
Christos Chalitsios, Dominick E. Shaw, Tricia M. McKeever
Summary: Exposure to oral or inhaled corticosteroids is associated with bone health issues in asthma patients, with a dose-response relationship. It is recommended to administer steroids at the lowest possible level to maintain asthma control.
Article
Respiratory System
Maria Booth Nielsen, Borge G. Nordestgaard, Marianne Benn, Yunus colak
Summary: This study found that high plasma adiponectin is observationally associated with an increased risk of asthma, but genetic evidence could not support a causal association between plasma adiponectin and asthma.
Article
Respiratory System
Kathrine Pape, Whitney Cowell, Camilla Sandal Sejbaek, Niklas Worm Andersson, Cecilie Svanes, Henrik Albert Kolstad, Xiaoqin Liu, Karin Sorig Hougaard, Rosalind J. Wright, Vivi Schlunssen
Summary: In a study of 466,556 children born in Denmark, three childhood onset asthma phenotypes were identified, and early life ACEs were found to be associated with increased odds for each of these phenotypes among both girls and boys.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Tingting Wang, Kevin Huynh, Corey Giles, Natalie A. Mellett, Thy Duong, Anh Nguyen, Wei Ling Florence Lim, Alex A. T. Smith, Gavriel Olshansky, Gemma Cadby, Joseph Hung, Jennie Hui, John Beilby, Gerald F. Watts, Pratishtha Chatterjee, Ian Martins, Simon M. Laws, Ashley Bush, Christopher C. Rowe, Victor L. Villemagne, David Ames, Colin L. Masters, Kevin Taddei, Vincent Dore, Juergen Fripp, Matthias Arnold, Gabi Kastenmueller, Kwangsik Nho, Andrew J. Saykin, Rebecca Baillie, Xianlin Han, Ralph N. Martins, Eric K. Moses, Rima Kaddurah-Daouk, Peter J. Meikle
Summary: The APOE genotype is strongly associated with late-onset Alzheimer's disease, with specific lipid species mediating up to 30% and 10% of the treatment effect of APOE epsilon 2 and epsilon 4, respectively. Plasma lipid species represent a potential therapeutic target for Alzheimer's disease.
ALZHEIMERS & DEMENTIA
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Janis D. Harse, Kun Zhu, Romola S. Bucks, Michael Hunter, Ee Mun Lim, Brian R. Cooke, John P. Walsh, Kevin Murray
Summary: Low vitamin D status has been linked to adverse cognitive outcomes in older adults. However, the relationships at higher levels are uncertain. This study aimed to clarify the association between vitamin D status and cognitive performance. The results showed that increasing levels of vitamin D were associated with better global cognition and attention accuracy in women, while in men, increasing levels of vitamin D were associated with better attention accuracy but poorer semantic verbal fluency and global cognition. Further longitudinal analyses are needed to understand the nature and strength of these relationships.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
Article
Ophthalmology
Jason Charng, Abdus Samad Ansari, Nicola P. Bondonno, Michael L. Hunter, Therese A. O'Sullivan, Panayiotis Louca, Chris J. Hammond, David A. Mackey
Summary: This study investigates the relationship between dietary intake of niacin and retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thickness in healthy eyes. The results suggest that niacin intake from a standard diet is not associated with age-related RNFL thinning in healthy eyes.
CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL OPHTHALMOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Victoria A. Kirsh, Kimberly Skead, Kelly McDonald, Nancy Kreiger, Julian Little, Karen Menard, John McLaughlin, Sutapa Mukherjee, Lyle J. Palmer, Vivek Goel, Mark P. Purdue, Philip Awadalla
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Sandra Nilsson, Jennifer Braunig, Renee N. Carey, Jennie Hui, Kayla Smurthwaite, Leisa-Maree Toms, Martyn D. Kirk, Jochen F. Mueller, Lin Fritschi
Summary: No studies have retrospectively measured PFAS concentrations in serum samples representative of a general population in Australia prior to 2000. In this study, researchers analyzed archived serum samples from 'The Busselton Health Study Data Bank'. Results showed that 13 PFAS were detected in the serum samples collected in 1975, and the PFAS serum concentrations increased significantly between 1975 and 1995, with a more than 7-fold increase in median n-ary summation PFAS serum concentration.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Nutrition & Dietetics
Sierra R. McDowell, Kevin Murray, Michael Hunter, Lauren C. Blekkenhorst, Joshua R. Lewis, Jonathan M. Hodgson, Nicola P. Bondonno
Summary: This study aimed to characterize and compare four dietary pattern indices in middle-aged Australian adults. The findings indicate that the diets of Australian middle-aged adults align more closely with the Australian Dietary Guidelines than with other international dietary patterns, likely due to the wide variation of individual food group weightings in the construction of these indices.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Xiwen Qin, Joseph Hung, Matthew W. Knuiman, Tom G. Briffa, Tiew-Hwa Katherine Teng, Frank M. Sanfilippo
Summary: This study investigated the relationship between adherence to renin-angiotensin system inhibitors (RASI) and beta-blockers and long-term outcomes in elderly heart failure patients. The results showed that higher adherence above 60% was associated with a significant reduction in the risk of all-cause death and death/HF readmission at 1 and 3 years. Therefore, improving adherence to these medications can improve long-term outcomes in hospitalized heart failure patients.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Ross J. Marriott, Kevin Murray, Charley A. Budgeon, Veryan Codd, Jennie Hui, Gillian M. Arscott, John P. Beilby, Graeme J. Hankey, Gary A. Wittert, Frederick C. W. Wu, Bu B. Yeap
Summary: Lower testosterone concentrations in middle-aged and older men are associated with shorter telomeres, suggesting that testosterone may contribute to biological aging in men.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF ENDOCRINOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Nick Shrine, Abril G. Izquierdo, Jing Chen, Richard Packer, Robert J. Hall, Anna L. Guyatt, Chiara Batini, Rebecca J. Thompson, Chandan Pavuluri, Vidhi Malik, Brian D. Hobbs, Matthew Moll, Wonji Kim, Ruth Tal-Singer, Per Bakke, Katherine A. Fawcett, Catherine John, Kayesha Coley, Noemi Nicole Piga, Alfred Pozarickij, Kuang Lin, Iona Y. Millwood, Zhengming Chen, Liming Li, Sara R. A. Wijnant, Lies Lahousse, Guy Brusselle, Andre G. Uitterlinden, Ani Manichaikul, Elizabeth C. Oelsner, Stephen S. Rich, R. Graham Barr, Shona M. Kerr, Veronique Vitart, Michael R. Brown, Matthias Wielscher, Medea Imboden, Ayoung Jeong, Traci M. Bartz, Sina A. Gharib, Claudia Flexeder, Stefan Karrasch, Christian Gieger, Annette Peters, Beate Stubbe, Xiaowei Hu, Victor E. Ortega, Deborah A. Meyers, Eugene R. Bleecker, Stacey B. Gabriel, Namrata Gupta, Albert Vernon Smith, Jian'an Luan, Jing-Hua Zhao, Ailin F. Hansen, Arnulf Langhammer, Cristen Willer, Laxmi Bhatta, David Porteous, Blair H. Smith, Archie Campbell, Tamar Sofer, Jiwon Lee, Martha L. Daviglus, Bing Yu, Elise Lim, Hanfei Xu, George T. O'Connor, Gaurav Thareja, Omar M. E. Albagha, Said I. Ismail, Wadha Al-Muftah, Radja Badji, Hamdi Mbarek, Dima Darwish, Tasnim Fadl, Heba Yasin, Maryem Ennaifar, Rania Abdellatif, Fatima Alkuwari, Muhammad Alvi, Yasser Al-Sarraj, Chadi Saad, Asmaa Althani, Eleni Fethnou, Fatima Qafoud, Eiman Alkhayat, Nahla Afifi, Sara Tomei, Wei Liu, Stephan Lorenz, Najeeb Syed, Hakeem Almabrazi, Fazulur Rehaman Vempalli, Ramzi Temanni, Tariq Abu Saqri, Mohammedhusen Khatib, Mehshad Hamza, Tariq Abu Zaid, Ahmed El Khouly, Tushar Pathare, Shafeeq Poolat, Rashid Al-Ali, Souhaila Al-Khodor, Mashael Alshafai, Ramin Badii, Lotfi Chouchane, Xavier Estivill, Khalid Fakhro, Younes Mokrab, Jithesh Puthen, Zohreh Tatari, Karsten Suhre, Raquel Granell, Tariq O. Faquih, Pieter S. Hiemstra, Annelies M. Slats, Benjamin H. Mullin, Jennie Hui, Alan James, John Beilby, Karina Patasova, Pirro Hysi, Jukka T. Koskela, Annah B. Wyss, Jianping Jin, Sinjini Sikdar, Mikyeong Lee, Sebastian May-Wilson, Nicola Pirastu, Katherine A. Kentistou, Peter K. Joshi, Paul R. H. J. Timmers, Alexander T. Williams, Robert C. Free, Xueyang Wang, John L. Morrison, Frank D. Gilliland, Zhanghua Chen, Carol A. Wang, Rachel E. Foong, Sarah E. Harris, Adele Taylor, Paul Redmond, James P. Cook, Anubha Mahajan, Lars Lind, Teemu Palviainen, Terho Lehtimaki, Olli T. Raitakari, Jaakko Kaprio, Taina Rantanen, Kirsi H. Pietilainen, Simon R. Cox, Craig E. Pennell, Graham L. Hall, W. James Gauderman, Chris Brightling, James F. Wilson, Tuula Vasankari, Tarja Laitinen, Veikko Salomaa, Dennis O. Mook-Kanamori, Nicholas J. Timpson, Eleftheria Zeggini, Josee Dupuis, Caroline Hayward, Ben Brumpton, Claudia Langenberg, Stefan Weiss, Georg Homuth, Carsten Oliver Schmidt, Nicole Probst-Hensch, Marjo-Riitta Jarvelin, Alanna C. Morrison, Ozren Polasek, Igor Rudan, Joo-Hyeon Lee, Ian Sayers, Emma L. Rawlins, Frank Dudbridge, Edwin K. Silverman, David P. Strachan, Robin G. Walters, Andrew P. Morris, Stephanie J. London, Michael H. Cho, Louise Wain, Ian P. Hall, Martin Tobin
Summary: Through a large-scale multi-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis, 1020 independent association signals implicating 559 genes related to COPD were identified. These genes were enriched in 29 pathways. Variants showed heterogeneity across ancestries, age and smoking groups, and the genetic risk score was strongly associated with COPD across ancestry groups. New potential causal variants, genes, proteins and pathways were highlighted, including those targeted by existing drugs. These findings contribute to a better understanding of lung function and COPD mechanisms and have implications for functional genomics experiments and future COPD therapies.
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
K. Zhu, M. Hunter, A. James, E. M. Lim, J. P. Walsh
Summary: Limited longitudinal data on the relationship between changes in body composition and bone mineral density (BMD) were found in this study. The findings suggest that changes in lean mass have a stronger impact on BMD than changes in fat mass. Maintaining or increasing lean mass can slow down age-related bone loss.
OSTEOPOROSIS INTERNATIONAL
(2023)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Rosie Clark, Samantha Sze-Yee Lee, Ran Du, Yining Wang, Sander C. M. Kneepkens, Jason Charng, Yu Huang, Michael L. Hunter, Chen Jiang, J. Willem L. Tideman, Ronald B. Melles, Caroline C. W. Klaver, David A. Mackey, Cathy Williams, Helene Choquet, Kyoko Ohno-Matsui, Jeremy A. Guggenheim
Summary: This study aimed to predict the risk of high myopia (HM) through an improved polygenic score (PGS) and test if the PGS is predictive of myopic macular degeneration (MMD) after considering refractive error. The study found that PGS can predict the risk of HM in Europeans, but its predictive ability is weaker in other populations.
Review
Medical Informatics
Luke A. Smith, Lauren Oakden-Rayner, Alix Bird, Minyan Zeng, Minh-Son To, Sutapa Mukherjee, Lyle J. Palmer
Summary: This study conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis on the performance of machine learning and deep learning models in predicting disease progression in COPD patients. The findings suggest that these models do not show significant improvement over existing disease severity scores. The study highlights the need for more rigorous reporting and larger datasets in future research.
LANCET DIGITAL HEALTH
(2023)
Article
Medical Informatics
Lauren Oakden-Rayner, William Gale, Thomas A. Bonham, Matthew P. Lungren, Gustavo Carneiro, Andrew P. Bradley, Lyle J. Palmer
Summary: This study presents a preclinical evaluation of a deep learning model for the diagnosis of proximal femoral fractures. The model outperformed radiologists in terms of diagnostic accuracy and maintained its performance on external validation. However, the evaluation also revealed unexpected limitations, highlighting the importance of thorough preclinical assessment of artificial intelligence models. This can help identify potential risks and inform future clinical testing and deployment decisions.
LANCET DIGITAL HEALTH
(2022)
Article
Peripheral Vascular Disease
Angela J. Burvill, Kevin Murray, Matthew W. Knuiman, Joseph Hung
Summary: This study investigates the validity of self-reported hypertension and hypercholesterolaemia using objective measures in a representative sample of Australian adults. The results show that self-reported hypertension and hypercholesterolaemia often misclassify individuals' true status and underestimate the prevalence of these conditions, especially at standard diagnostic thresholds. Factors such as age, body mass index, self-rated health, diabetes, and family history of hypertension are associated with the accuracy of self-report. Therefore, caution should be exercised when using self-reported data for surveillance studies.
CLINICAL HYPERTENSION
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Ross J. Marriott, Nigel McArdle, Bhajan Singh, Stuart King, Ivan Ling, Kim Ward, Ellie Darcey, Daniela Bond-Smith, Sutapa Mukherjee, Lyle J. Palmer, David Hillman, Gemma Cadby
Summary: This study analyzed the long-term trends of patients undergoing PSG and diagnosed with OSA, observing an increase in the proportion of females and a decline in socioeconomic status, as well as changes in age and obesity. Changes in scoring methods have significant impacts on OSA diagnosis and disease severity judgment.
