CT scans suggest possible lung destruction in some asthmatics

[2greys]

A novel CT scan-based approach has revealed significant changes in a parameter indicating lung destruction in some asthmatics. This finding could lead to more personalized treatments for asthma accompanied by persistent airflow limitation.

Clinicians have long thought that some people with asthma experience declines in their lung function, called fixed airflow obstruction (FAO), due to changes to their airways. Now, scientists at Hokkaido University and colleagues have found that the issue in these people could extend to the surrounding lung tissue. They published their findings in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

“Bronchial asthma is considered to be mainly due to inflammation and remodeling of the larger respiratory airways,” explains respirologist Kaoruko Shimizu of Hokkaido University. “But not all asthmatics improve with the typical treatments prescribed to alleviate this condition. We wanted to know if changes to the surrounding lung tissue induced a decline in pulmonary function over time in this subgroup of patients,” she explains.

Shimizu and her colleagues applied a novel computer tomography (CT)-based approach to detect changes in lung tissue. In this approach, the scientists examined CT scans employing an index called “exponent D” for areas of reduced lung density with increasing coalescence of neighboring airspaces, which indicates emphysema, or the destruction of air sacs. The team also measured airway obstruction by testing the ability of people with asthma to forcefully exhale air in one second. This ability is reduced when the airways are narrower.

global.hokudai.ac.jp/blog/c...

Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Research Paper (PDF file):

jacionline.org/article/S009...

[ck101]

Unusual report;

Asthmatics develop Emphysema correlated / verifiable by decline in FEV1. Sample included both smokers and non smokers.

Hard to see the groundbreaking news in that article 2Greys.

[2greys in reply to ck101]

Perhaps not to you. Perhaps you have not actually read the complete articles

[ck101 in reply to 2greys]

Sorry 2greys, my apologies I never clicked on the second link. 🤦🏻‍♂️Wow that’s significant. An excerpt below. So non smoking asthmatics with fixed airway type changes ending up with emphysema type changes. And we don’t take asthma seriously, I certainly didn’t DUH, Darwin Award Recipient here!!!

Conclusions

Asthmatics with FAO showed the parenchymal destruction regardless of smoking status and asthma severity. The parenchymal destruction was associated with an accelerated FEV1 decline, suggesting the involvements of both airway and parenchyma in the pathophysiology of a subgroup of asthma.

[2greys in reply to ck101]

A great deal of the time, the Research/Study Papers are hard to understand as by their nature they can be very technical. I always try to include them, even those that are behind paywalls as there are sometimes professionals who do visit the forum who may have access to them. Which is why I never lock my posts. How many or how often I do not know. It is not unknown for me to get the occasional PM from some.

[ck101]

Yes I see that and the content you have posted is first class. Bravo. Unfortunately this one is a significant development and not in realm of good news. I would worry about my sister, asthmatic, never smoker 60% FEV1, tiny reversibility.

[2greys in reply to ck101]

Not all my findings are good news, in the main they are neutral or good. If I filtered out the bad ones then I would be guilty of censorship, hiding the truth and possibly preventing the knowledge to avoid harm. So the best I can do is just make it all known.

[Tia4209]

Very interesting thank you 2 Greys. Does FAO, stand for Fixed Airway Obstruction and what is parenchymal please. Thank you.

[2greys in reply to Tia4209]

Yes, Fixed Airway Obstruction.

Parenchymal means, pertaining to, or resembling, the functional elements of an organ or tissue, rather than to its structural parts (matrix).

medical-dictionary.thefreed...

[Tia4209 in reply to 2greys]

Thank you.

[mylungshateme]

Thanks 2greys, as a professional and complex asthmatic with post covid syndrome I always find your work informative. I always appreciate the time you put in. 🙂

[katieoxo60]

Thank you 2greys another interesting article , especially for someone like myself where most of my family members have Asthma. Its a lot more complex than just breathing difficulties with flare ups.

[peege]

Thanks 2g. I think environment can play a part too for non smoking asthmatics. Luckily I dont have emphysema which surprises me really having been brought up in London smogs, pollution and a pipe smoking parent. Others may have had poor working environment too