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	Visit the library wing featuring COPD Advocate Bill Horden's works.
	We have a special chat for the newly diagnosed, new computer users or those that are unfamiliar and want to learn more about how chatrooms work - it is much slower paced - More Information    ------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

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COPD-INTERNATIONAL NEWSLETTER http://www.COPD-International.com Dedicated to the philosophy "You can learn to control this disease instead of letting it control you!" Monday, April 20, 2009             Volume #8 -- Issue #16 Susie Bowers, Editor -- Web-Editor@COPD-International.com Copyright ? 2009 COPD-International.com All rights reserved. FREE BY SUBSCRIPTION ONLY! Subscription information is at the end of this newsletter. THIS IS AN AUTOMATED MESSAGE PLEASE DO NOT REPLY. This newsletter is published on Mondays. _______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > > > >       IN THIS ISSUE       < < < < < < < < < _______________________________________________________________ ==>  Welcome ==>  COPD News ==>  Recalls/Warnings ==>  Featured Articles - New Trends for Respiratory Therapists ==>  Nutrition/Wellness ==>  Community Update ==>  Link Directory ==>  Just for Fun ==>  Recipe ==>  Closing Thought ==>  Subscribe/Unsubscribe Information ________________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > > >           WELCOME           < < < < < < < < < ________________________________________________________________ ABOUT US We are a group of fellow COPD sufferers, caregivers and others interested in this disease. Our online community is devoted to helping one another to live the best life possible with this debilitating illness through interactive support. As many of us have found, COPD is a disease of many faces, contradictions and components. Therefore, our diversified community is here to share its combined wealth of knowledge and information, so we may all become well-informed patients and take control of our disease rather than letting this disease control us. We welcome your input and participation in our newsletters and will review for publication any pertinent information you wish to share with others on COPD and related topics. Also, periodically we will feature stories and information from guest writers. If you wish to contribute to the newsletter, please contact us at Newsletter@COPD-International.com. Yours in health, Susie in Delaware        Editor's Note: There are several exceptionally long links in        this edition. Please cut and paste the entire address into        your browser if you have trouble opening the page. ________________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > > >          COPD NEWS          < < < < < < < < < ________________________________________________________________ A COPD PATIENT COMPLETES THE BOSTON MARATHON On Feb. 12th, Mike McBride sent an email that said "received word today that the Boston Athletic Association is going to allow me to participate in 2009 Boston Marathon as a mobility impaired athlete. I am so excited!!" He went on to say "Now I?ll work my behind off to make sure I cross the finish line ..... It remains to be proven that an old man with COPD can do the mother of all marathons." Today (4/20) at 9:00, in the small New England town of Hopkington MA, Mike crossed the start line, beginning the final steps in his quest to not only be the first COPD patient to be accepted as a competitor in the worlds oldest marathon, but to finish. 7:31:36 (7 hours, 31 minutes, and 36 seconds) later, with temperatures in the mid 40's, a wind in his face, and hauling 4 Oxygen tanks over such obstacles as Heartbreak Hill (the downfall of many runners over the 113 years of the marathon), Mike crossed the finish line in Copley Square, Boston, MA. Read more at: http://www.COPD-International.com/library/Boston.htm AUSTRALIAN GUIDELINES FOR MANAGEMENT OF COPD RELEASED New Australian guidelines for management of COPD have been released, with new advice on anticholinergic safety, living wills and smoking cessation. The latest version of the Australian Lung Foundation's COPD-X guidelines posted online includes new advice based on a review of the safety and side effects of tiotropium and ipratropium. It concludes that the beneficial effects of tiotropium come at a cost of increased adverse drug effects, but with no increase in death from any cause and a decreased rate of serious adverse cardiac events. On ipratropium, an increased risk of adverse cardiovascular effects was identified, the guidelines note. New advice for GPs is also provided to cover the issue of Advanced Care Planning for patients with advanced COPD. See New Guidelines: http://www.copdx.org.au/guidelines/index.asp LEGIONNAIRES: HOW INFECTION IS ACQUIRED Legionnaires disease is a bacterial infection that causes severe pneumonia, which can be fatal. The disease takes its name from the first recorded outbreak in 1976 at a conference of American Legionnaires (or ex-servicemen). In that outbreak, 221 people were infected and 34 died. A bacterium that had not been identified up to then was found to be the cause and was named Legionella Pneumophilia. In recent years, there have been sporadic outbreaks. Legionella bacteria thrive in warm water and are typically found in piped water or storage tanks in large buildings, air-conditioning systems and warm-water whirlpool baths or spas. Infection is normally acquired by breathing in water droplets from these sources. After an incubation period of between two and 10 days, symptoms of pneumonia occur. See More: http://www.independent.ie/national-news/legionnaires-how-infection-is-acquired-1429946.html NHLBI HIRES FIRM TO BUOY COPD AWARENESS EFFORTS The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) awarded Porter Novelli a three-year, $3.6 million integrated account that will enhance the agency's COPD awareness campaign, according to Amy Pianalto, project officer for the NHLBI. The "Learn More Breathe Better" campaign, which launched in January 2007, is an ongoing effort that includes PR, ads, and marketing. It aims to raise awareness about the disease, especially among the 12 million people who have not yet been diagnosed with COPD. Work began April 1 and is based out of PN's Washington office, said Dr. Carolyn Tieger. Tieger said that the win was significant for the agency, partly because the NHLBI was the firm's first client in 1972. Raising awareness about the fact that the disease is treatable is one of the campaign's main goals, she noted. See Story: http://www.prweekus.com/NHLBI-hires-PN-to-buoy-COPD-awareness-efforts/article/130715/ POT PLUS CIGARETTES BOOSTS LUNG DISEASE RISK People who smoke both tobacco and marijuana may have a particularly high risk of developing COPD, a new study suggests. Cigarette smoking is a well-known risk factor for COPD, a group of lung diseases that includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. In this study, people who smoked tobacco alone were at elevated risk. On the other hand, the study failed to show a strong link between pot smoking, by itself, and a higher COPD risk. The findings suggest that marijuana and cigarette smoking may act "synergistically" to promote COPD, the researchers report in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. See Article: http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE53C5ZA20090413 COPD NO TRIVIAL PROBLEM By Tedd Mitchell, M.D. President, CEO of Dallas' Cooper Clinic Chronic lung disease is our nation's No. 4 killer. And 80 percent to 90 percent of those deaths come from one cause: smoking. The two main types of COPD are emphysema and chronic bronchitis. There's an old Scottish proverb that goes something like this: "We'll never know the worth of water till the well goes dry." Unfortunately, for millions of Americans, COPD has caused their lungs' wells to "go dry." For a doctor, few things are as difficult to watch as someone suffering from severe obstructive lung disease. As the fourth leading cause of death after heart disease, cancer and stroke, COPD is no trivial problem for our nation. Still, COPD is preventable. That's because 80 percent to 90 percent of all COPD deaths result from just one cause: smoking. See Article: http://www.usaweekend.com/09_issues/090412/090412healthsmart-breathing.html ASTHMA STUDY: ACID REFLUX TREATMENT HAS LITTLE IMPACT Results from a new, government-funded study should change treatment practices for millions of asthma patients who take acid reflux drugs but have no heartburn symptoms. The practice of prescribing acid reflux- targeting proton pump inhibitor (PPI) medications to patients whose asthma is not well controlled with treatment has become common in recent years. But the new study confirms that acid reflux drugs do not improve asthma control in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) who do not have heartburn or other acid reflux symptoms. An asthma expert with the NIH's National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) says millions of asthma patients with so-called "silent GERD" may be taking acid reflux drugs for no reason. See Article: http://www.webmd.com/asthma/news/20090408/millions-with-asthma-dont-need-ppis NURSES' ROLE IN MANAGING PATIENTS WITH BRONCHIECTASIS In a previous article on bronchiectasis, Alan Peres defined bronchiectasis, its pathophysiology and clinical manifestations, and how nurses may assess patients presenting with it. This article provides an overview of treatment and the role of the nurse in providing and managing the care of patients with this condition. See More: http://www.nursingtimes.net/nursing-practice-clinical-research/specialists/respiratory/the-nurse%E 2%80%99s-role-in-managing-patients-ith-bronchiectasis/5000165.article STUDY: OZONE LEVELS RAISE RESPIRATORY DEATH RATE People who live in areas with the most ozone pollution are 25 percent to 30 percent more likely to die from lung disease than those living in areas with the cleanest air, researchers reported recently. Michael Jerrett of the University of California, Berkeley and colleagues studied nearly 500,000 people across the United States for 18 years and found that ozone played no role in heart disease deaths once air pollution consisting of very tiny particles was taken into account. But ozone, at ground level a corrosive form of oxygen that is the primary constituent of smog, was the key player in respiratory fatalities. See Story: http://www.calgaryherald.com/business/Ozone+levels+raise+respiratory+death+rate+Study/1382224/story.html MEDICAL RESEARCHERS FACE CONFLICTS OF INTEREST Dr. Bruce Psaty of University of Washington in Seattle knows how easy it can be to fall under the spell of a friendly relationship with drug companies. As an assistant professor, he published an article on using beta-blockers to treat high blood pressure that caught the attention of the pharmaceutical industry. "My family and I were invited to a first-class resort, where I presented the results at a sponsored conference," Psaty wrote in a commentary in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). He agreed to help develop a set of slides on beta-blockers and soon found himself suggesting that the drug company's studies be featured, in part because he felt "a kind of social duty to reciprocate both the kindness and the investment made by the sponsor in the slide set." Psaty said his own story illustrates the subtleties of conflicts of interest. He is dissatisfied with the current debate among doctors, spurred by reports last year by Iowa Republican Sen. Charles Grassley that a prominent Harvard psychiatrist failed to fully disclose hefty payments from drug companies. See Article: http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE5391L820090413 Make browsing in our Library and catching up on general medical news in our Reading Room part of your daily surfing routine at http://www.copd-international.com/Library/ _______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > > >     RECALLS / WARNINGS      < < < < < < < < < _______________________________________________________________ U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE RECALLS The link below leads to the list of active recall cases of the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). See current recalls at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Fsis_Recalls/Open_Federal_Cases/index.asp U.S. FDA RECALLS To view current U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recalls, go to http://www.fda.gov/opacom/7alerts.html _______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > > >      FEATURED ARTICLES      < < < < < < < < < _______________________________________________________________ NEW TRENDS FOR RESPIRATORY THERAPISTS Research shows that respiratory therapists are the best qualified medical professionals to teach asthma sufferers how to correctly use their equipment. By Cindy Mehallow Monster Contributing Writer For millions of people with asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), other smoking-related illnesses and some sleep disorders, the simple act of breathing can become a life-or-death struggle. Respiratory therapists (RTs) help provide immediate care, ongoing rehabilitation and patient education so patients can live as normally as possible. RTs, please, for asthma For asthmatics in an acute phase, RTs restore normal breathing through use of handheld inhalers, nebulizers and, if necessary, injections. These therapists really shine as they teach patients how to manage their disease. Research shows that RTs are the best qualified medical professionals to teach the nation's approximately 20 million asthma sufferers how to correctly use their breathing equipment, says respiratory therapist Thomas J. Kallstrom, RRT, FAARC, director of respiratory care and echo/vascular services at Fairview Hospital in Cleveland. "Asthma is our disease," says Kallstrom, a certified asthma educator. "We provide essential information to help patients recuperate and to prepare them to never see us again. If they take their medication properly, they should never have to come to an emergency room." See More: http://www.suntimes.com/monster/industry/healthcare/1336025,respiratory-therapy-1217.article _______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > > >     NUTRITION/WELLNESS     < < < < < < < < < _______________________________________________________________ LUNG PATIENTS BENEFIT FROM NUTRITION ADVICE People with chronic lung conditions tend to be underweight or malnourished, but dietary counseling can help them gain some weight and function better, new research shows. For their study, Dr. C. Elizabeth Weekes and colleagues recruited 59 people COPD, an umbrella term for lung conditions, such as emphysema or chronic bronchitis. The participants were assigned on a random basis to receive dietary counseling and advice on food fortification or to receive a dietary advice leaflet only. The counseling was ongoing for six months, and the subjects were followed for another six months. Daily intake of calories and protein was significantly greater in the intervention group than in the comparison group, Weekes' team reports in the medical journal Thorax. See Article: http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE53779020090408 7 WAYS TO KEEP GOING -- By Therese J. Borchard A woman who lives with chronic pain said to my mom the other day, "You can't sit around and wait for the storm to be over. You've got to learn how to dance in the rain." That's a perfect description of living with depression, or any chronic illness. But what do you do on the days you don't think you can take the pain anymore? When you want so badly to be done with your life . or at least be done with the suffering? What do you do when anxiety and depression have spun a web around you so thick that you're convinced you'll be trapped forever in those feelings? I've compiled a few tools for moving past that harrowing darkness, suggestions on how to emerge from a place of panic, and techniques on how to dance in the rain.         1. Escape from the pain.         2. Track your mood.         3. Talk about it.         4. Repeat: "I WILL Get Better"!         5. Take baby steps . a day at a time.         6. Distract yourself.         7. Get out your self-esteem file. See Details: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2009/04/07/8-ways-to-keep-going/ _______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > > >      COMMUNITY UPDATE       < < < < < < < < < _______________________________________________________________ WELCOME NEW SUBSCRIBERS! We welcome all our new subscribers and invite you to join our e-mail lists and check out our chat rooms, where you can talk freely about COPD in an atmosphere of fellowship. The link to the chat schedules can be found on our Home Page or just drop in anytime you have a need to talk. For new subscribers, archives of back issues of the newsletter can be accessed at http://www.copd-international.com/Library/newsletters/archives.htm MESSAGE BOARD ON SURGICAL OPTIONS FOR COPD Thanks to the generous contribution of time and experience by some of our regulars here at COPD International, we were able to open a new message board for the exchange of information and support on surgical options for COPD. This new board will cover subjects such as LVRS, transplants and valve procedures, etc. For a complete listing of all our message boards (forums), please go to http://www.copd-international.com/messageboards.htm COPD NEWS/INFORMATION FEATURE "COPD Info" brings you the latest news, articles and information from a wide variety of resources on a very timely basis. http://www.copd-international.com/COPDInfo/ For those of you with news readers, there is also an RSS link. LOVING THOUGHTS To express your loving thoughts, get-well wishes and prayers for our fellow community members, who are very ill or hospitalized, please go to http://www.copd-international.com/Loving_Thoughts/ -- Mike Asarch, Metro as we know him in chat, received his call for his double-lung transplant. You can leave messages for Mike at http://www.copd-international.com/Loving-Thoughts/ NEWCOMERS CHAT         -- Tuesdays at 1:30  p.m. - Hosted by Deb and Lyn. -- New Time         -- Wednesdays at 10:00 p.m. - Hosted by Jackie and Rachel.                                     Officially titled "Newcomers Chat," you do not have to be                   new to COPD to join us!  It is for the newly diagnosed,                   new computer users or those that are unfamiliar and want                   to learn more about how chat rooms work.  These chats will                   be slow paced to give all time to keep up.                            These chats are held in the Special COPD Topic Room at                   http://www.copd-international.com/COPD/chat.htm                   If you are a mIRC or Web TV user, the room is #copd TWO COPD FOCUSED CHATS These chats are a change from our "open" chat style to a more structured "COPD focused" type of chat that is geared exclusively to discussions surrounding our COPD diagnosis and its related life issues.         -- Mondays at 3 p.m. hosted by Lyn and James         -- Fridays at 10:30 a.m. hosted by Deb and Naomi ON-TOPIC CHATS         -- Caregivers: (NEW TIMES)            Hosts Kitty, Gal, Jackie and Lyn            (Note: Only caregivers in these chats please.)            http://www.copd-international.com/caregivers/chat.htm                 -- Monday through Friday at 9:30 to 10:30pm --         -- Quit Smoking Now (QSN): Daily at 7:30 p.m.            with Hosts James, Gal, and Jackie            http://www.copd-international.com/quit_smoking/chat.htm.            For more information on all our chat rooms, please contact Deb, chat coordinator, at chat@copd-international.com. ______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > > > >    LINK DIRECTORY    < < < < < < < < < < < ______________________________________________________________ SPECIAL-INTEREST PROGRAMS         -- General Information on Clinical Trials            http://www.COPD-International.com/Library/clinical_trials.htm                  -- Continually Updated List of COPD Clinical Trials            http://www.COPD-International.com/Library/trials.htm                  -- Quit Smoking Support            http://www.COPD-International.com/quit_smoking/                  -- Exercise Forum            http://www.COPD-International.com/exercise/                  -- Caregivers Support            http://www.copd-international.com/caregivers/                  -- COPD Advocate Bill Horden Library            http://www.copd-international.com/COPDAdvocate/                  -- COPD Library            http://www.COPD-International.com/Library/                  -- Welcome Wagon            http://www.COPD-International.com/welcome/                  -- To Volunteer            http://www.copd-international.com/volunteer.htm Don't forget to checkout all our support programs listed on our Home Page at www.COPD-International.com. _______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > >           JUST FOR FUN          < < < < < < < < < _______________________________________________________________ AMAZING BEACH TRIVIA QUIZ As you head off for your highly anticipated beach vacation, have a little beach fun! Take this breezy trivia quiz to discover some amazing -- and little-known -- facts of life about America's sandy shores. See Quiz: http://encarta.msn.com/quiz_273/amazing_beach_trivia_quiz.html _______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > > >            RECIPE           < < < < < < < < < _______________________________________________________________ EASY GARLIC BROILED CHICKEN This very easy dish works with any cut of chicken, skin on or off...even with whole split chickens. Tip: Don't omit the parsley. PREP TIME  10 Min COOK TIME  20 Min READY IN  30 Min SERVINGS 6 INGREDIENTS         1/2 cup butter         3 tablespoons minced garlic         3 tablespoons soy sauce         1/4 teaspoon black pepper         1 tablespoon dried parsley         6 boneless chicken thighs, with skin         Dried parsley, to taste DIRECTIONS         Preheat the oven broiler. Lightly grease a baking pan.         In a microwave safe bowl, mix the butter, garlic, soy sauce,         pepper and parsley. Cook 2 minutes on High in the microwave, or         until butter is melted.         Arrange chicken on the baking pan, and coat with the butter         mixture, reserving some of the mixture for basting.         Broil chicken 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until juices run         clear, turning occasionally and basting with remaining butter         mixture. Sprinkle with parsley to serve. (Allrecipes) _______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > >         CLOSING THOUGHT         < < < < < < < < _______________________________________________________________ About Guarantees, Hope and Chance! Bill Woods, Woody as we know him, had a double lung transplant 5 years ago.  As he has said many times, all he wanted was a chance - an he feels blessed that he has, in fact, had that. Over the past 5 years, he and Judy have been able to travel a lot, crisscrossing a good part of the country and visiting many of their COPD friends. He has had several setbacks, yet has been vehement in his desire to insure that his issues never cause a potential transplant candidate to back away. A firm believer in the good that it has given him, even today, as his FEV1 has deteriorated along with rising CO2 retention, the word passed on from Woody was to insure that people were encouraged, not discouraged. As we all know, there are no long term guarantees in life in general, much less in COPD patients. cg _______________________________________________________________ > > > > > > > >     SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE     < < < < < < < < < _______________________________________________________________ TO SUBSCRIBE: mailto:List-admin@copd-international.com?subject=subscribe-news TO UNSUBSCRIBE: mailto:List-admin@copd-international.com?subject=unsubscribe-news ONLINE ACCESS: http://www.COPD-International.com/lists <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Recommend the COPD-International Newsletter to a friend! Thank You For Your Readership ----------------- Notes ----------------- Newsletters are archived in the COPD-International online Library. However, links to outside sources cannot be guaranteed after publication date. "COPD-International Newsletter" is an opt-in ezine available by subscription only. You must have sent an e-mail request or visited our Web site to request this subscription. We neither use nor endorse the use of "spam." This newsletter is never sent to anyone who has not requested it and we NEVER share your e-mail address with third-parties. ? 2009 COPD-International.com, except where otherwise indicated. All rights reserved worldwide. Reprint only with permission from copyright holder(s). All trademarks are property of their respective owners. All content provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. All Disclaimers Apply: The information and guidance provided in this newsletter should never be interpreted as a diagnosis, treatment plan or any other form of professional service. All information provided should be judged as individual "opinions" and discussed with a qualified health care professional before any remedy, treatment or therapy is started. Links in this newsletter to other Internet sites are not endorsements of any products or services associated with such sites.

Last modified: April 21, 2009