scholarly journals Patients with Community Acquired Pneumonia Exhibit Depleted Vitamin C Status and Elevated Oxidative Stress

Author(s):  
Anitra C. Carr ◽  
Emma Spencer ◽  
Liane Dixon ◽  
Steve Chambers

Pneumonia is a severe lower respiratory tract infection that is a common complication and a major cause of mortality of the vitamin C-deficiency disease scurvy. This suggests an important link between vitamin C status and lower respiratory tract infections. Due to the paucity of information on the vitamin C status of patients with pneumonia, we assessed the vitamin C status of 50 patients with community-acquired pneumonia and compared these with 50 healthy community controls. The pneumonia cohort comprised 44 patients recruited through the Acute Medical Assessment Unit (AMAU) and 6 patients recruited through the intensive care unit (ICU); mean age 68 ± 17 years, 54% male. Clinical, microbiological and haematological parameters were recorded. Blood samples were tested for vitamin C status using HPLC with electrochemical detection and protein carbonyl concentrations, a marker of oxidative stress, using ELISA. Patients with pneumonia had depleted vitamin C status compared with healthy controls (23 ± 14 µmol/L vs 56 ± 24 µmol/L, P <0.001). The more severe patients in the ICU had significantly lower vitamin C status than those recruited through AMAU (11 ± 3 µmol/L vs 24 ± 14 µmol/L, P = 0.02). The total pneumonia cohort comprised 62% with hypovitaminosis C and 22% with deficiency, compared with only 8% hypovitaminosis C and no cases of deficiency in the healthy controls. The pneumonia cohort also exhibited significantly elevated protein carbonyl concentrations compared with the healthy controls (P < 0.001), indicating enhanced oxidative stress in the patients. We were able to collect subsequent samples form 28% of the cohort (mean 2.7 ± 1.7 days; range 1-7 days). These showed no significant differences in vitamin C status or protein carbonyl concentrations compared with baseline values (P = 0.6). Overall, the depleted vitamin C status and elevated oxidative stress observed in the patients with pneumonia indicates an enhanced requirement for the vitamin during their illness. Due to the important roles that vitamin C plays in the immune system, low vitamin C status is possibly both a cause and a consequence of the disease. Therefore, these patients would likely benefit from additional vitamin C supplementation to restore their blood and tissue levels to optimal. This may decrease oxidative stress and aid in their recovery.

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anitra C. Carr ◽  
Emma Spencer ◽  
Liane Dixon ◽  
Stephen T. Chambers

Pneumonia is a severe lower respiratory tract infection that is a common complication and a major cause of mortality of the vitamin C-deficiency disease scurvy. This suggests an important link between vitamin C status and lower respiratory tract infections. Due to the paucity of information on the vitamin C status of patients with pneumonia, we assessed the vitamin C status of 50 patients with community-acquired pneumonia and compared these with 50 healthy community controls. The pneumonia cohort comprised 44 patients recruited through the Acute Medical Assessment Unit (AMAU) and 6 patients recruited through the Intensive Care Unit (ICU); mean age 68 ± 17 years, 54% male. Clinical, microbiological and hematological parameters were recorded. Blood samples were tested for vitamin C status using HPLC with electrochemical detection and protein carbonyl concentrations, an established marker of oxidative stress, using ELISA. Patients with pneumonia had depleted vitamin C status compared with healthy controls (23 ± 14 µmol/L vs. 56 ± 24 µmol/L, p < 0.001). The more severe patients in the ICU had significantly lower vitamin C status than those recruited through AMAU (11 ± 3 µmol/L vs. 24 ± 14 µmol/L, p = 0.02). The pneumonia cohort comprised 62% with hypovitaminosis C and 22% with deficiency, compared with only 8% hypovitaminosis C and no cases of deficiency in the healthy controls. The pneumonia cohort also exhibited significantly elevated protein carbonyl concentrations compared with the healthy controls (p < 0.001), indicating enhanced oxidative stress in the patients. We were able to collect subsequent samples from 28% of the cohort (mean 2.7 ± 1.7 days; range 1–7 days). These showed no significant differences in vitamin C status or protein carbonyl concentrations compared with baseline values (p = 0.6). Overall, the depleted vitamin C status and elevated oxidative stress observed in the patients with pneumonia indicates an enhanced requirement for the vitamin during their illness. Therefore, these patients would likely benefit from additional vitamin C supplementation to restore their blood and tissue levels to optimal. This may decrease excessive oxidative stress and aid in their recovery.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 14-18
Author(s):  
E. V. Sharipova ◽  
I. V. Babachenko ◽  
M. A. Shcherbatyh

Long time the main pathogens associated with the development of community-acquired pneumonia were bacteria. However, in recent years in the Russian Federation, like all over the world, the view of the damage of lower respiratory tract changed, including a unique approach to community-acquired pneumonia as a bacterial infection, and respiratory viruses have become seen as a direct cause of lower respiratory tract damage, or as part of a viral-bacterial co-infection. These studies became possible since the widespread introduction of PCR techniques in the clinical setting, identification of respiratory viruses has increased and new microorganisms such, one as human bocavirus have been discovered. Objective: to study the features of respiratory tract damage in acute bocavirus infection in children of different ages. Materials and methods: A retrospective analysis of 97 medical hospital documentation of children with acute bocavirus infection, detected confirmed by PCR in nasopharyngeal aspirate. Results: In this work, it was shown that human bocavirus spread throughout the year with an increase in the incidence of clinically significant forms in the autumnwinter period, including during the period of an increase in the incidence of influenza. HBoV infection requiring hospitals is most significant in the first three years of life. In 74.2% of hospitalized children, bocavirus infection occurs with lower respiratory tract infections in the form of bronchitis — 77.8%, pneumonia — 28.9% and rarely bronchiolitis and is complicated by the development of respiratory failure in 28.9% of cases. Changes in the blood test are non-specific, and the level of C-reactive protein in children with various clinical manifestations of HBoV infection generally does not exceed 50 mg / l. An x-ray of the chest organs does not objectively reflect the existing volume and nature of the inflammatory process in the lungs.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric J Chow ◽  
Melissa A Rolfes ◽  
Ruth L Carrico ◽  
Stephen Furmanek ◽  
Julio A Ramirez ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Preventing severe complications of influenza such as hospitalization is a public health priority; however, estimates of influenza vaccine effectiveness (VE) against influenza-associated acute lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) hospitalizations are limited. We examined influenza VE against influenza-associated LRTIs in hospitalized adult patients. Methods We retrospectively analyzed data from a randomized trial of oseltamivir treatment in adults hospitalized with LRTI in Louisville, Kentucky, from 2010 to 2013. Patients were systematically tested for influenza at the time of enrollment. We estimated VE as 1 – the adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of antecedent vaccination in influenza-positives vs negatives × 100%. Vaccination status was obtained by patient self-report. Using logistic regression adjusting for age, sex, season, timing of illness, history of chronic lung disease, and activities of daily living, we estimated VE against hospitalized influenza-associated LRTIs and community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) with radiographic findings of infiltrate. Results Of 810 patients with LRTI (median age, 62 years), 184 (23%) were influenza-positive and 57% had radiographically confirmed CAP. Among influenza-positives and -negatives, respectively, 61% and 69% were vaccinated. Overall, 29% were hospitalized in the prior 90 days and &gt;80% had comorbidities. Influenza-negatives were more likely to have a history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease than influenza-positives (59% vs 48%; P = .01), but baseline medical conditions were otherwise similar. Overall, VE was 35% (95% CI, 4% to 56%) against influenza-associated LRTI and 51% (95% CI, 13% to 72%) against influenza-associated radiographically confirmed CAP. Conclusions Vaccination reduced the risk of hospitalization for influenza-associated LRTI and radiographically confirmed CAP. Clinicians should maintain high rates of influenza vaccination to prevent severe influenza-associated complications.


Author(s):  
Tahmina Afrose Keya ◽  
Anthony Leela ◽  
Kevin Fernandez ◽  
Nasrin Habib ◽  
Mumunur Rashid

Background: Respiratory tract infections are a primary cause of illness and mortality over the world. Objective: This study was aimed to investigate the effectiveness of vitamin C supplementation in preventing and treating respiratory tract infections. Methods: We used the Cochrane, PubMed, and MEDLINE Ovid databases to conduct our search. The inclusion criteria were placebo-controlled trials. Random effects meta-analyses were performed to measure the pooled effects of vitamin C supplementation on the incidence, severity, and duration of respiratory illness. Results: found ten studies that met our inclusion criteria out of a total of 2758.The pooled risk ratio (RR) of developing respiratory illness when taking vitamin C regularly across the study period was 0⸳94 (with a 95% confidence interval of 0⸳87 to 1⸳01) which found that supplementing with vitamin C lowers the occurrence of illness. This effect, however, was statistically insignificant (P= 0⸳09). This study showed that vitamin C supplementation had no consistent effect on the severity of respiratory illness (SMD 0⸳14, 95% CI -0⸳02 to 0⸳30: I2 = 22%, P=0⸳09). However, our study revealed that vitamin C group had a considerably shorter duration of respiratory infection (SMD -0⸳36, 95% CI -0⸳62 to -0⸳09, P = 0⸳01). Conclusion: Benefits of normal vitamin C supplementation for reducing the duration of respiratory tract illness were supported by our meta-analysis findings. Since few trials have examined the effects of therapeutic supplementation, further research is needed in this area.


1998 ◽  
Vol 9 (suppl e) ◽  
pp. 30E-34E
Author(s):  
Alasdair P MacGowan ◽  
Tracey Halladay ◽  
Andrew M Lovering

A number of national guidelines have been published to aid the antimicrobial management of community-acquired pneumonia. However, data on prescriptions for lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) indicate considerable variation in the choice of first-line and subsequent therapy at national and local levels. Outcomes research in LRTI, whether based on clinical, economic or patient-focused criteria, is still evolving. Clinical outcomes are best studied for both pneumonia and exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Economic evaluations often do not encompass all of the costs, for example, time off from work or the economic impact of antibacterial resistance. Duration of hospital stay is a good marker of costs for hospital providers and may be affected by age. marital status and comorbidities. Antibiotic choice may have an impact on the duration of hospital stay by increasing side effects, predisposing patients to hospitalacquired infection or reduced clinical efficacy. Patient expectation is largely unstudied in pulmonary infection.


2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 1808
Author(s):  
Manish Agrawal ◽  
Rajeev Adkar ◽  
Milind Kulkarni ◽  
Dhaval J. Sheth ◽  
Rommel Idnani ◽  
...  

Background: Scientific literature advocates the need for combination therapies in combatting lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI). Cefixime (400 mg) and moxifloxacin (400 mg) fixed dose combination (FDC) is currently approved in India for the management of LRTI, but data related to its real world usage is lacking. The present study was designed to understand the real world use (effectiveness and safety) of this FDC in LRTI.Methods: This retrospective study was conducted at out-patient departments of 5 hospitals between August 2018 and January 2019. After ethics committee approval, data of adults LRTI patients who received FDC of cefixime (400 mg) and moxifloxacin (400 mg) for at least 72 hours was collected. Improvement in LRTI symptoms (cough, sputum volume and purulence, fever, dyspnea, pleuritic chest pain, sleep disturbance, fatigue) were scored at baseline and follow-up using a 5-point severity scale. White blood cell (WBC) counts at baseline and end-of-treatment were compared.Results: Data of 190 patients having mean age 42.33+16.15 years was evaluated. Majority were males (61.58%), with commonest LRTI infection being community acquired pneumonia (CAP) (84.21%). Commonest clinical symptom reported (97.37%) was cough. All patients showed improvement in symptoms and significant improvement in all mean symptom scores were noted (p<0.05). Of the 30 patients having WBC above normal range, 29 showed a decrease in count at end of treatment. No adverse events were reported.Conclusions: Oral FDC of cefixime (400 mg) and moxifloxacin (400 mg) was efficacious in improving all symptoms reported by LRTI patients without causing any adverse event.


2017 ◽  
Vol 145 (13) ◽  
pp. 2770-2776 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. ANDERSON ◽  
G. DECEUNINCK ◽  
Z. ZHOU ◽  
F. D. BOUCHER ◽  
Y. BONNIER VIGER ◽  
...  

SUMMARYStreptococcus pneumoniaeis an important cause of community-acquired pneumonia and pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) may reduce this burden. This study's goal was to analyse trends in lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) hospitalisations before and during a routine vaccination programme targeting all newborns with PCV was started in the province of Quebec, Canada in December 2004. The study population included hospital admissions with a main diagnosis of LRTI among 6–59 month-old Quebec residents from April 2000 to December 2014. Trends in proportions and rates were analysed using Cochran-Armitage tests and Poisson regression models. We observed a general downward trend in all LTRI hospitalisations rate: from 11·55/1000 person-years in 2000–2001 to 9·59/1000 in 2013–2014, a 17·0% reduction, which started before the introduction of PCV vaccination. Downward trends in hospitalisation rates were more pronounced for all-cause of pneumonia (minus 17·8%) than for bronchiolitis (minus 15·4%). There was also a decrease in the mean duration of hospital stay. There was little evidence that all-cause pneumonia decreased over the study period due mainly to the introduction of PCVs. Trends may be related to changes in clinical practice. This study casts doubt on the interpretation of ecological analyses of the implementation of PCV vaccination programmes.


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