American Thoracic Society 2019 (ATS 2019) International Conference

Podcast: Professor Helen Reddel talks about the efficacy of as-needed budesonide/formoterol among patients with mild asthma in the SYGMA 1 and 2 studies

Podcast: Professor Oliver Distler talks about the utility of nintedanib in ILD in the SENSCIS trial

Extended preloading of varenicline for 6 weeks before the target quit day (TQD) safely improves the efficacy of the prescription medication in facilitating smoking cessation at 12 weeks and at 6 months, according to a study presented at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) 2019 International Conference, held at Dallas, Texas in the US.

Smokers tend to suffer from poor sleep health, reports a new study presented at the recently concluded 2019 International Conference of the American Thoracic Society (ATS 2019). Moreover, having poor sleep health may intensify existing deficits in lung health in these individuals.

Rapid identification of pathogens using a molecular point-of-care testing (POCT) significantly reduces intravenous antibiotic use and the duration of hospitalization among patients with acute lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI), a study presented at ATS 2019 shows.

A 3-month treatment course of low-dose azithromycin for acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder appears to safely reduce treatment failure by preventing transfer to intensive care or readmission for respiratory causes, according to a posthoc analysis of the BACE* trial presented at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) 2019 International Conference.

Early neuromuscular blockade (NMB) with concomitant heavy sedation in patients with moderate-to-severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) did not result in a significant mortality difference vs usual care, the ROSE* trial has shown.

Treatment with the tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) nintedanib reduces pulmonary function decline in patients with systemic sclerosis–associated interstitial lung disease (SSc-ILD), according to the phase III SENSCIS* trial which is touted as the largest randomized controlled trial in SSc-ILD thus far.

The long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMA) aclidinium bromide significantly reduced the rates of COPD exacerbation* without increasing the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) compared with placebo in patients with moderate-to-very severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and increased cardiovascular (CV) risk, according to the results of the ASCENT-COPD** trial presented at ATS 2019.

Treatment with the ICS* mometasone or the LAMA** tiotropium did not significantly improve outcomes over placebo in patients with mild, persistent asthma presenting with low eosinophil levels, the SIENA*** study finds, thus calling for a reconsideration of the convention that all patients with persistent asthma should receive ICS.