Top pulmonology news in May: Latest COVID-19 research

Healio Pulmonology has you covered. The Editors have compiled a list of popular articles posted on Healio Pulmonology in May.

See below for links to an interview about thrombolysis as a potential treatment for atypical COVID-19-related acute respiratory distress syndrome, recent improvement in medication adherence among patients with asthma and COPD, bacterial contaminants found in Juul products and more.

Thrombolysis: A potential treatment for atypical ARDS in COVID-19

In an interview with Healio, Hooman D. Poor, MD, director of pulmonary vascular disease at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, discussed how thrombolysis led to dramatic, immediate physiologic improvement in five critically ill patients with COVID-19. Read more

Asthma in certain patients elevates risk for worse COVID-19 outcomes

An analysis of sputum samples from patients with asthma suggests that certain subgroups, such as men, African Americans and those with diabetes, have higher expression of two genes that may make them more susceptible to more severe COVID-19 disease, researchers reported in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Read more

Asthma, COPD medication adherence improved during COVID-19 pandemic

From January through March, during the COVID-19 pandemic, adherence to controller inhalers appears to have increased among patients with asthma and COPD, according to a research letter published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice. Read more

Prone positioning may benefit some patients with COVID-19 respiratory failure

Use of prone positioning is feasible and may yield improvements in some patients with COVID-19 who are receiving noninvasive respiratory support, according to two research letters published in JAMA. Read more

Mortality, mechanical ventilation common among critically ill patients with COVID-19 in NYC

Among patients with COVID-19 treated during the height of the pandemic in New York City, critical illness was common and was significantly associated with invasive mechanical ventilation, extrapulmonary organ dysfunction and in-hospital mortality, according to a study published in The Lancet. Read more

Study identifies cardiopulmonary contributors to death in COVID-19

An autopsy study of African Americans who died from COVID-19 in New Orleans has revealed that certain pulmonary and cardiac pathology likely contributed to severe disease and death in this patient population. Read more

Bacterial contaminants found in Juul vaping products

Researchers have found that Juul e-cigarette products, particularly tobacco- and menthol-flavored vaping liquids, may be contaminated with microbial toxins, according to data that were to be presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference. Read more

Pulmonary pathobiology may differ in COVID-19 vs. H1N1 respiratory failure

Patients who died from COVID-19-associated respiratory failure had more intussusceptive angiogenesis in their lungs than those who died from influenza, according to an autopsy study. Read more

Study evaluates US inpatient, ICU needs should Wuhan-like outbreak occur

An analysis of the need for inpatient and ICU beds during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in two Chinese cities indicates that early implementation of strict disease control strategies is needed to prevent overload of local health care systems in U.S. cities. Read more

Lung diffusion capacity impairment common among COVID-19 survivors

Impairment of lung diffusion capacity, which correlated with severity of disease, appeared to be the most common lung function abnormality among a series of patients who recovered from COVID-19 in China, according to a research letter published in the European Respiratory Journal. Read more