Pulmonary Rehabilitation - is it worth it?
In last month’s patient meetings here at Wythenshawe Hospital, the topic of pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) came up. Some people said it had been useful, some people felt pushed into it, some people felt it was too much and actually made them feel worse instead of better.
This gave us food for thought and we went away to look at the literature. Has anyone studied the outcomes of PR from the patients’ perspective?
The answer was yes! In October last year a paper was published on exactly that, a survey of 1685 people with self-reported chronic lung disease in 29 countries.
Patient stories from World Aspergillosis Day
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On World Aspergillosis Day (February 1st), the Aspergillosis Trust organised a whole host of activities and awareness campaigns, to mark the occasion. Alongside their very successful Selfie Campaign, and the poster that was displayed on London buses in the run up to the day, the Aspergillosis Trust collected some poignant stories from patients and carers. Click here to read these stories and find out more about what the Aspergillosis Trust does.
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Air Pollution Worldwide - Check your town
There is now a worldwide reference point for air pollution for many pollutants that will irritate the lungs of people with lung disease.
Beautiful Cure: Harnessing your body’s natural defences
We think that people who have chronic aspergillosis may have slight differences in their immune system compared with people who do not seem to be vulnerable to aspergillosis. One way we might be able to help patients fight off aspergillosis may well be to find ways to adjust or even correct the immune differences that cause those vulnerabilities and this book talks about our increasing knowledge and power to do just that in many other diseases. The same techniques may be used to help people with respiratory illness' such as aspergillosis - indeed they already are as anyone who is being given Xolair to treat ABPA has found out.
Stay Active to Stay Young
This Hippocratic Post article is aimed at the elderly and of course many of us aren't getting any younger! We have established that any person with a pulmonary aspergillosis can play a part in maintaining lung function long term by remaining active and taking some exercise each day - 15mins of whatever exercise you can safely manage every day is a good maintenance guide but consult your doctor for specific advice.
Hormonal Replacement Therapy (HRT) can Support Lung Function in Middle-Aged Women.
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can slow the decline in lung function in middle-aged women, according to new research presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress, a major conference for the study of lung health.
Helping People Who Are Socially Isolated Using a Robot
A ground-breaking study at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London is trialling the impact that artificial intelligence paired with robot technology can have on patients. Although there is much refinement still to do Dr. Marcela P. Vizcaychipi and Dr Yiannis Demiris have managed to demonstrate that there are real possibilities for such a robot to provide some social contact to people who are isolated and also to help with their treatment in a limited way - reminding patients to carry out exercises and demonstrate the required movements being one way.
Caring for our Carers
In a speech at the Annual Marie Curie Palliative Care Conference 2017 Professor Gunn Grande will talk about better ways that clinicians and healthcare professionals can better care for their patients by engaging with the people who have the most input into the patients care and daily life: the carer(s). There are many obstacles to better communication with carers, not the least being that many people are in a carer role and yet do not think of themselves as carers, identifying a child, a wife, a husband.
Yoga Can Help Asthmatics
Julia White has published a thought provoking article on her experience of getting her asthma under control with the help of yoga. After several months works she was able to sense an asthma attack coming on and use yoga to relax and calm herself.
“I aim to practise yoga every day as I know just five minutes of yogic breathing and three or four postures will make me feel more energised and relaxed. All I need to do is find a quiet space, roll out my yoga mat and let the movements and deep breathing techniques work my mind and body.”