Shorter distance on six-minute walk test points up a greater risk of deathSeptember 18, 2006For idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) patients awaiting lung transplantation, a simple walk test can predict mortality rates. A new study found that individuals with IPF who can cover less than 680 feet during the six-minute test are four times more likely to die than those who can walk greater distances. The research appears in the second issue for September 2006 of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, published by the American Thoracic Society. David J. Lederer, M.D., of the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, and five associates examined the records of 454 adult IPF patients on U.S. transplantation waiting lists. In IPF, lung tissue is damaged by an unknown cause. The walls of the air sacs become inflamed, which leads to scarring or fibrosis. As a result, patients with IPF frequently suffer from progressive respiratory failure. Eventually, the scarring causes permanent loss of the lungs' ability to transport oxygen. To date, lung transplantation is the only medical therapy that has been shown to improve survival. Twenty-percent of all lung transplant procedures performed worldwide involve patients with IPF. The investigators call the six-minute walk test a "simple, safe, reliable and inexpensive" way to assess the self-paced exercise capacity of IPF patients. It varies little when repeated on the same person over a short period of time. "A total of 209 patients had a six-month follow-up without undergoing lung transplantation," said Dr. Lederer. "Forty-nine of these patients, 23 percent, died during that time period. The six-minute walk test's ability to separate those alive at six months from those who died was not only significantly better than chance, but also superior to the forced vital capacity percent (FVC%) predicted test." The authors noted that a lower six-minute walking distance was associated with more severe lung disease, status as a minority and lower educational attainment in a nationwide cohort of patients with IPF who were listed for lung transplantation. The test also predicted waitlist mortality independently of age, sex, race, lung function indices, presence of pulmonary hypertension and other potential confounders. According to the investigators, the six-minute walk test has at least four advantages over other tests: 1) it is less costly than other tools; 2) it can be performed on patients with severe hypoxemia (inadequate amounts of oxygen in the blood) who require continuous high-flow oxygen; 3) it can be performed in any sufficiently long hallway by appropriately trained personnel; and 4) it does not require specialized equipment and expertise found only in established pulmonary function laboratories; The authors concluded that a test like FVC% predicted might not be valid for gauging survival in patients with IPF who have been listed for lung transplantation because of the serious nature of their illness. American Thoracic Society |
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| Related Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Current Events and Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis News Articles Pitt team first to profile genes in acutely ill idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis patients The first findings from a one-of-a-kind, patient-driven effort to provide lung tissue for research might help doctors predict when patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) are becoming dangerously ill and also could point the way to interventions that could sustain them until life-saving transplants can be performed. Protein may be strongest indicator of rare lung disease, study shows Researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) have discovered a protein in the lungs that can help in determining progression of the rare lung disease Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). Large clinical trial finds pirfenidone may help lung function in IPF patients A large, well-controlled, multi-national clinical trial program has demonstrated the effectiveness and safety of what may become the first FDA-approved medicine for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or IPF. UT Southwestern researchers identify gene linked to inherited form of fatal lung disease Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have determined that a mutation in a gene known for its role in defending the lungs against invading pathogens is responsible for some inherited cases of a lethal lung disease affecting older adults. The same mutation may also be associated with lung cancer, the researchers said. Double threat: Deadly lung disease also linked to heart attacks Patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) are three times as likely to experience severe coronary events-including heart attacks-than people without the disease. Note to people with scarred and stiffened lungs: Monitor your sleep before severe fatigue sets in Family, friends and neighbors remember Lisa Sandler Spaeth as an active mother of two in Potomac, Md., with a lot on the go, juggling her son's baseball games and her daughter's horseback-riding lessons with numerous committee obligations, organizing women's activities at her local synagogue. Biomarkers identified for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis The first evidence of a distinctive protein signature that could help to transform the diagnosis and improve the monitoring of the devastating lung disease idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is being reported by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers in this month's edition of PLoS Medicine, an open-access journal of the Public Library of Science. Rare Lung Disease Cells Indicate Higher Death Risk Large numbers of certain cells in the lungs of patients diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis may increase their chance of death, UC researchers have discovered. Smoking belies milder disease but worse prognosis for IPF patients Smokers and ex-smokers with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), an untreatable progressive lung disease that usually leads to death within a few years of diagnosis, have a worse prognosis than non-smokers, according to research from London. Translational research patented first experimental treatment against idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a disease with unknown cause with a very severe prognosis; when detected, it is already in an advanced stage. More Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Current Events and Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis News Articles |
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