Respiratory viral infections are frequently associated with exacerbations of asthma. Double‐stranded RNA (dsRNA) produced during viral infections may be one of the stimuli for exacerbation. We aimed to assess the potential effect of dsRNA on certain aspects of chronic asthma through the administration of polyinosine‐polycytidylic acid (poly I:C), synthetic dsRNA, to a rat model of asthma. Brown Norway rats were sensitized to ovalbumin and challenged three times to evoke airway remodelling. The effect of poly I:C on the ovalbumin‐induced airway inflammation and structural changes was assessed from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and histological findings. The expression of cytokines and chemokines was evaluated by real‐time quantitative reverse transcription PCR and ELISA. Ovalbumin‐challenged animals showed an increased number of total cells and eosinophils in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid compared with PBS‐challenged controls. Ovalbumin‐challenged animals treated with poly I:C showed an increased number of total cells and neutrophils in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid compared with those without poly I:C treatment. Ovalbumin‐challenged animals showed goblet cell hyperplasia, increased airway smooth muscle mass, and proliferation of both airway epithelial cells and airway smooth muscle cells. Treatment with poly I:C enhanced these structural changes. Among the cytokines and chemokines examined, the expression of interleukins 12 and 17 and of transforming growth factor‐β₁ in ovalbumin‐challenged animals treated with poly I:C was significantly increased compared with those of the other groups. Double‐stranded RNA enhanced airway inflammation and remodelling in a rat model of bronchial asthma. These observations suggest that viral infections may promote airway remodelling.

The severity of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is diagnosed with polysomnography (PSG), during which patients are monitored by over 20 physiological sensors overnight. These sensors often bother patients and may affect patients’ sleep and OSA. This study aimed to investigate a method for analyzing patient snore sounds to detect the severity of OSA. Using a microphone placed at the patient’s bedside, the snoring and breathing sounds of 22 participants were recorded while they simultaneously underwent PSG. We examined some features from the snoring and breathing sounds and examined the correlation between these features and the snore-specific apnoea-hypopnea index (ssAHI), defined as the number of apnoea and hypopnea events during the hour before a snore episode. Statistical analyses revealed that the ssAHI was positively correlated with the Mel frequency cepstral coefficients (MFCC) and volume information (VI). Based on clustering results, mild snore sound episodes and snore sound episodes from mild OSA patients were mainly classified into cluster 1. The results of clustering severe snore sound episodes and snore sound episodes from severe OSA patients were mainly classified into cluster 2. The features of snoring sounds that we identified have the potential to detect the severity of OSA.

Background: Dielectric blood coagulometry (DBCM) has been presented as a new test for estimating the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) by measuring the permittivity change associated with blood coagulation. Yet no earlier studies have investigated the clinical utility of DBCM. Objective: We aimed to estimate the clinical utilities of DBCM. Methods: Our group prospectively measured DCT, the clotting time estimated by DBCM, in 192 inpatients at the Department of Respiratory Medicine of Tokyo Medical and Dental University Hospital between May 2011 and January 2013. We also measured in 28 healthy volunteers as control group. Additionally, other laboratory findings were evaluated for both patients and controls. Results: The normal range of DCT was estimated at between 21.0 and 54.8 minutes based on measurements of healthy volunteer controls. Coagulation was significantly accelerated in patients with interstitial pneumonitis, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and sleep apnea syndrome, when measured by DBCM. There was little correlation between DCT and conventional coagulation test results. Conclusion: DBCM is a novel tool for estimating blood coagulation and may be useful for identifying patients at high risk of thrombosis. However a single DCT measurement would be insufficient for a definite diagnosis of thrombosis. Further long-term observation is needed to evaluate the usefulness of DBCM.