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New study results showed that 42.3 percent of smokers with mild-to-moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who took CHANTIX/CHAMPIX® (varenicline) were able to quit smoking and remain abstinent during the last four weeks of treatment (weeks 9-12) compared with 8.8 percent of those given placebo (p

New Formula Calculates More Accurate 'Lung Age' in Smokers (#7896 ) A new formula more accurately calculates a smoker's "lung age," which researchers hope will help persuade patients to quit the habit. A research team from Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, developed and evaluated a new lung age formula based on %FEV1/FEV6 rather than the current lung age formulas based on height and FEV1 or FVC.

Air Pollution Major Factor in Fresno Health (#8164) Air pollution is a major health risk for patients in Fresno, CA, who suffer from chronic lung diseases. Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, Fresno compared the weekly rates of those admitted to the ER with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) with air pollution indices for corresponding weeks.

Awareness of COPD - chronic obstructive pulmonary disease - continues to grow in the United States, according to national survey results released by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health. Sixty-eight percent of adults are now aware of COPD, a disease that affects 1 in 5 people over age 45, compared with 64 percent last year, and 49 percent in a 2004 survey.

Tropical zebrafish have helped researchers at the University of Sheffield pave the way for the discovery of new anti-inflammatory drugs to treat illnesses such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma.

Bio-Matrix Scientific Group, Inc. (OTCBB: BMSN) provided a progress report on the Company's previously announced new opportunities. The Company has been moving forward in the areas of stem cell research for treatment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Tumor Banking and Cancer Treatment.

The Lung Association invites you to register now for the Coast 2 Coast Challenge, a virtual trek across Canada to raise awareness of COPD, a long-term breathing disease. Registration is free for this exciting event, which will start November 1st and go until November 18th, World COPD Day. Everyone is welcome to take part. If you or someone you love has COPD, or if you're interested in supporting this great cause, please join us. Here's how it works: 1.

National Jewish Health and four other research centers have been awarded an $11 million, two-year grant from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute as part of the NIH Recovery Act that will allow a team of national scientists to delve deeply into the biology of two fatal lung diseases for which there are few therapeutic options.

Patients with moderate to severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) can benefit from triple therapy that includes a long-acting β-agonist (LABA), an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) and an anti-muscarinic agent, according to researchers in Germany.

VENTILATION MASK LEAKAGE MAY CONTAMINATE HOSPITAL ROOM New research shows that certain noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV) masks may leak exhaled air up to a distance of 1 m from patients receiving treatments. This finding raises concerns about the potential spread of highly contagious respiratory illness within the hospital setting.

In the air, it is a serious pollutant. In the body, it plays a role in heart rate, blood flow, nerve signals and immune function. Nitric oxide, a gas well known to scientists for its myriad functions, has proven challenging to measure accurately outside the laboratory. A team of Princeton and Rice University researchers has demonstrated a new method of identifying the gas using lasers and sensors that are inexpensive, compact and highly sensitive.

In the lung, mucus is produced by cells known as goblet cells, which are present in small numbers in the walls of the lungs and airways. Many inflammatory stimuli, including allergens, cigarette smoke, and chronic infections, increase the number and activity of these goblet cells.

In a development that could lead to a novel approach to the treatment of a devastating lung disease, biochemists at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston report they are the first to link the osteopontin (OPN) protein to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Findings appear online and will be in the January 2010 print issue of The FASEB Journal, the journal of The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

Almirall, S.A. (ALM.MC) today announced its intention to file a Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) with the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) for its once-daily long acting muscarinic antagonist Eklira® (aclidinium bromide) in early 2010, for the maintenance bronchodilator treatment and symptom control of COPD. COPD is an under-diagnosed progressive lung disease which causes difficulties with breathing, deterioration in the quality of life and it may lead to death.

The Lung Association released the following statement with regards to their campaign to ban pets on board airplanes: "Since July 2009, thousands of Canadians from across the country have joined our campaign to ensure pet-free flights from Canada's major airlines. While Air Canada and WestJet continue to be uninterested in protecting the health of those with

A new vaccine against pneumonia may offer better protection from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients than the currently accepted vaccine, according to recent research that will be published in the September 15 issue of the American Journal of the Respiratory and Critical Care Journal, a publication of the American Thoracic Society.

PEDIATRIC CHRONIC COUGH LINKED TO REFLUX AND ALLERGIES New research shows that chronic cough in children is most often caused by gastroesophageal reflux and allergies. Researchers from Tulane University in New Orleans, LA, evaluated 40 patients aged 5 to 12 years with chronic cough (> 8 weeks in duration) with no obvious cause. Each patient underwent extensive multispecialty testing.

Pharmacists are being urged to identify and refer patients with chronic lung and other conditions who have problems with their medication, following research showing that two thirds of asthma and COPD patients are under-using preventer inhalers and risking unnecessary breathing problems.

COPD is an under-diagnosed progressive lung disease that may lead to death. In Canada, approximately 500,000 people over the age of 35 have been diagnosed with COPD, and it is estimated that an almost equal number of middle-aged Canadians may also have COPD, but are not aware of it.i In fact, by 2020, it is estimated that COPD will be the third leading cause of death worldwide.ii Roflumilast, a once-a-day oral tablet, would be the first in a new class of treatment for COPD.

Researchers have developed an index scale to help physicians predict a patient's risk of dying from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The ADO index can help physicians assess the severity of a patient's illness to determine the appropriate level of treatment. COPD, which comprises emphysema and chronic bronchitis, is a major public health problem and it is the fourth leading cause of death in the U.S.

Roflumilast, an oral, once a day anti-inflammatory agent, improves lung function and reduces exacerbations in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who have chronic respiratory symptoms and are at greater risk of exacerbations. The effect persists even when roflumilast is added to conventional treatment with inhaled long-acting bronchodilators. Thus, roflumilast therapy has the potential to become an important treatment for these patients.

While the effectiveness of drug therapy for COPD patients at advanced stages of disease has been proven, little evidence exists regarding starting treatment at earlier stages. The findings of the UPLIFT study, published in an Article Online First to coincide with this week's COPD special issue of The Lancet, show that treatment with inhaled tiotropium at an earlier stage of COPD reduces decline of lung function-and thus treatment should begin at this earlier stage.

Contrary to other research findings, patients using the inhaled corticosteroid budesonide to treat Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) are not at increased risk of pneumonia, and the drug is safe to use in these patients, concludes an Article in this week's COPD special issue of The Lancet. Inhaled corticosteroids are prescribed with and without beta-antagonists to relieve the symptoms and improve the quality of life for patients with COPD.

A new score, the ADO index, for predicting a patient's risk of dying from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) performs better than the current test and is much more applicable in clinical practice. It could help doctors target suitable treatment options to individual patients, finds an Article to be published in this week's COPD special edition of The Lancet.

Forest Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE: FRX), an international pharmaceutical manufacturer and marketer and Nycomed, a privately owned pharmaceutical company, announced that results of four phase III trials have been published in the prestigious peer-reviewed medical journal The Lancet showing that roflumilast, a phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) inhibitor, improved lung function and reduced exacerbations in patients with moderate to severe COPD.