BACKGROUND: Bronchiectasis is common in patients with advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and adversely affects the patients' clinical condition. This study aimed to investigate the effects of bronchiectasis on exercise capacity, dyspnea perception, disease-specific quality of life, and psychological status in patients with COPD and determine the extent of these adverse effects by the severity of bronchiectasis. METHODS: A total of 387 COPD patients (245 patients with only COPD [Group 1] and 142 COPD patients with accompanying bronchiectasis [Group 2]) were included in the study. The patients in Group 2 were divided into three subgroups as mild, moderate, and severe using the Bronchiectasis Severity Index. Six-minute walk distance, dyspnea perception, St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ), and hospital anxiety and depression scores were compared between the groups. RESULTS: In Group 2, dyspnea perception, SGRQ total scores, depression score were higher, and walking distance was lower (P = 0.001, P = 0.007, P = 0.001, and P = 0.011, respectively). Group 2 had significantly worse arterial blood gas values. Dyspnea perception increased with the increasing severity in Group 2 (P < 0.001). Walking distance was lower in patients with severe bronchiectasis (P < 0.001). SGRQ total score, anxiety, and depression scores were significantly higher in the severe subgroup (P < 0.001, P = 0.003, and P = 0.002, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with Stage 3 and 4 COPD, the presence of bronchiectasis adversely affects the clinical status of the patients, decreases their exercise capacity, deteriorates their quality of life, and disrupts their psychological status. Investigating the presence of bronchiectasis in COPD patients is crucial for early diagnosis and proper treatment.

Background/Aim. Previous population-based studies found association between duration of sleep and cardiovascular and metabolic comorbidities. Our aim was to investigate the association between the duration of sleep and cardiovascular and metabolic comorbidities in OSAS.Patients and Methods. The study enrolled 312 patients, who had polysomnography (PSG) during 2006-2007 and responded to a telephone-administered questionnaire providing information on characteristics of sleep on average 12 months after PSG.Results. Of the patients, 90 were female (28.8%), 173 (58.5) received the diagnosis of OSAS, 150 (45%) had no comorbidities, 122 had hypertension (HT), 44 had diabetes mellitus (DM), and 38 had coronary heart disease (CHD). Mean ± SD of age in years was47.2±10.6,56.5±9.3,53.2±8.9, and59.9±9.0for the no comorbidity, HT, DM, and CHD groups, respectively. Reported duration of sleep was not associated with any of the comorbidities in the overall group. In the analysis restricted to OSAS patients, sleep duration ≤6 hours was significantly associated with CHD after the adjustment for age, gender, and other associated factors (OR: 5.8, 95% CI: 1.0–32.6).Conclusions. Confirmation of the association between shorter duration of sleep and CHD will provide prognostic information and help for the management of OSAS.

COVID-19,air pollution,stringency index,PM10,NO2,O3

The new UK strain was first described in December 2020. It was seen for the first time in Turkey in February 2021. It is not yet known whether the new strain has different CT patterns compared to the classical type. We present a 68-years-old male patient with an atypical CT presentation in which GGOs are gathered around the areas of paraseptal emphysema accompanied by CT and clinical findings. This involvement is an unexpected pattern because of the atypical distribution of the GGO.

Considering Patient Perspective Through Visual Representatives: Telemedicine Gives Voice to Rare Interstitial Lung Disease Patients - Thoracic Research and Practice