Benefits of oxygen on exercise performance and pulmonary hemodynamics in patients with COPD with mild hypoxemia

STUDY OBJECTIVES: To clarify the effects of oxygen on exercise performance and pulmonary hemodynamics during exercise in patients with COPD with mild hypoxemia at rest. DESIGN: Seventy-five male patients with stable COPD ("pink puffer" type), accompanied by mild hypoxemia (> 60 mm Hg) at rest and with mild (percentage of predicted FEV1 [%FEV1] > 50%, n = 16), moderate (%FEV1 > 35% to < or = 50%, n = 25), and severe (%FEV1 < or =35%, n = 34) airflow obstruction were recruited from an outpatient clinic. A 6-min walking distance (6MD) test was administered to 75 patients, and the pulmonary hemodynamics of 43 subjects were determined during exercise on a supine bicycle ergometer at 25 W and breathing compressed air and oxygen at 2 L/min. RESULTS: Supplemental oxygen resulted in a significant increase in 6MD, except for patients with mild airflow obstruction and mild desaturation. This increase in 6MD produced by oxygen was greater as the restriction of the airflow was more severe, and correlated negatively with %FEV1, but not with PaO2 at rest or exercise hypoxemia. Pulmonary artery pressure (Ppa) and pulmonary artery occlusion pressure (Pop) increased with exercise, while the rates of increase in both types of pressure were significantly higher for severe COPD than for mild COPD and moderate COPD. Oxygen inhalation significantly reduced the increases in Ppa and Pop during exercise in patients with moderate-to-severe COPD, and the effect of oxygen on the increase in Pop correlated positively with airtrapping (vital capacity - FVC). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that supplemental oxygen benefits patients with COPD with moderate-to-severe airflow obstruction and mild hypoxemia at rest, as reflected in improvement in exercise performance and pulmonary hypertension during exercise.     

A case of Mycobacterium avium pulmonary disease accompanied with pleural effusion

Nontuberculous mycobacterial infection is seldom complicated with pleural involvement. We report a very rare case of M. avium pulmonary disease accompanied with pleural effusion. A 76-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of cough and low-grade fever. A chest radiograph and computed tomograph showed centrilobular nodules in the right middle lobe and left lingula, and right pleural effusion. The patient had had a right spontaneous pneumothorax 50 days before his admission. The sputum smear was negative for acid fast bacilli. The smear of pleural effusion was positive for acid fast bacilli, the level of adenosine deaminase in the effusion was markedly elevated, and pleural effusion was positive for M. avium as assessed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The pleural biopsy specimen showed fibrous change without granuloma, while the transbronchial biopsy specimen showed noncaseous epithelioid granulomas. We considered that the pneumothorax was caused by the spread of pulmonary M. avium infection to the visceral pleura with its perforation.     

Image-guided bronchoscopy for histopathologic diagnosis of pure ground glass opacity: a case report

Guided bronchoscopy has been found to be useful for the diagnosis of solid peripheral pulmonary lesions (PPLs) but more evidence on ground glass opacities (GGOs), especially those without a solid component, are lacking. A 69-year-old male, asymptomatic, heavy smoker was referred to our department for non-surgical diagnosis of a focal pure GGO in the right upper lobe that was found incidentally on computed tomography (CT). Transbronchial biopsy (TBB) with the aide of endobronchial ultrasound with a guide sheath (EBUS-GS), virtual bronchoscopic navigation (VBN), and fluoroscopy was performed for sampling. There were no complications after the procedure. The diagnosis of adenocarcinoma with lepidic growth pattern was established from the fourth and fifth TBB specimens and was confirmed on subsequent surgical resection. Image-guided bronchoscopy with TBB was successful for the diagnosis of a pure GGO. Use of a larger biopsy device may be helpful for the histopathologic diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma with lepidic growth.     

Impact of vascular abnormality on contrast-enhanced CT and high C-reactive protein levels on postoperative pancreatic hemorrhage after pancreaticoduodenectomy: A multi-institutional,retrospective analysis of 590 consecutive cases

Background/Objectives: This study aimed to elucidate the efficacy of CT findings and perioperative characteristics to predict post-pancreatectomy hemorrhage (PPH): a critical complication after pancreaticoduodenectomy.MethodsThe records of 590 consecutive patients who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy at three institutes between 2012 and 2018 were included. The presence of a vascular wall abnormality or ascites with high density (vascular abnormality) on postoperative day (POD) 5–10 contrast-enhanced CT (early CT), perioperative characteristics, and any PPH or pseudoaneurysm formation (PPH events) were analyzed through a multivariate analysis.ResultsPPH events occurred in 48 out of 590 patients (8%). The vascular abnormality on early CT and the C-reactive protein (CRP) value on POD 3 were independent risk factors for PPH events after POD5 (vascular abnormality: odds ratio 6.42, p = 0.001; CRP on POD 3: odds ratio 1.17, p = 0.016). The sensitivity of vascular abnormality for PPH events was 24% (7/29), and the positive predictive value was 30% (7/23). The combination of vascular abnormality and a high CRP value (≥15.5 mg/dL) on postoperative day 3 had a higher positive predictive value of 64% (7/11) than the vascular abnormality alone. None of the seven PPH events that occurred more than one month after surgery were foreseen via early CT.ConclusionThe combination of vascular abnormality and high CRP value was associated with increasing risk of PPH events after pancreaticoduodenectomy, but the low sensitivity of early CT must be noted as an important shortcoming. The normal findings on early CT could not eliminate the risk of late PPH.     

Physician Job Satisfaction and Quality of Care Among Hospital Employed Physicians in Japan

Background  Physician job satisfaction is reportedly associated with interpersonal quality of care, such as patient satisfaction, but its association with technical quality of care, as determined by whether patients are offered recommended services, is unknown. Objective  We explored whether the job satisfaction of hospital-employed physicians in Japan is associated with the technical quality of care, with an emphasis on process qualities as measured by quality indicators. Design  Cross-sectional study linking data from physician surveys with data abstracted from outpatient charts. Participants  A total of 53 physicians working at 13 hospitals in Japan participated. Medical records covering 568 patients were reviewed. Measurements  Disease-specific indicators related to the care of patients with hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and asthma, as well as disease-independent measures of the process of care were abstracted. We analyzed the association between the quality of care score for individual physicians, which is defined as the percentage of quality indicators satisfied among the total for which their patients were eligible, and physician job satisfaction, which was measured by a validated scale. Results  No statistically significant association between physician job satisfaction and quality of care was observed. A 1-standard deviation (SD) increment in the physician job satisfaction scale was associated with an increase of only 0.3% for overall quality (P = 0.85), −3.0% for hypertension (P = 0.22), 2.5% for type 2 diabetes (P = 0.44), 8.0% for asthma (P = 0.21), and −0.4% for cross-cutting care (P = 0.76). Conclusion  Contrary to the positive association reported between physician job satisfaction and high quality of interpersonal care, no association was seen between physician job satisfaction and the technical quality of care.