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Biomedical subjects

K C Bergmann

Publications and source records attributed to K C Bergmann.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Pharmaceutical care services for asthma patients: a controlled intervention study.

As asthma is associated with an enormous social, psychological, and economic burden, various patient education programs have been developed to improve outcomes, including quality of life. The authors evaluated the effectiveness of community pharmacy-based interventions on lung function, health-related quality of life, and self-management in asthma patients in a 12-month controlled intervention study in 26 intervention and 22 control pharmacies. Pharmacies opted whether to take part as intervention or control pharmacies. According to this, patients (ages 18-65) with mild to severe asthma attending the pharmacies were allocated to the intervention (n = 161) or control group (n = 81), respectively. Intervention patients were educated on their disease, pharmacotherapy, and self-management; inhalation technique was assessed and, if necessary, corrected. Pharmaceutical care led to significantly improved inhalation technique. Asthma-specific quality of life and the mental health summary score of the SF-36 improved significantly in the intervention group. At 12 months, the intervention group showed significant improvements with regard to evening peak flow, self-efficacy, and knowledge.

Administration, Inhalation↗
PubMed2000

[Sensitization to chinchillas on exposure in households] .

The contact to chinchilla in households may lead to sensibilization and allergic rhinitis in children and adults. In nasal provocation tests on 6 sensibilized patients suffering on perennial rhinitis and/or asthma one child and three adults showed positive reactions with chinchilla hair extract. Allergen avoidance is recommended.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

[Quality of life of adult asthma patients].

BACKGROUND: Concepts of quality of life are gaining in increasing significance as measures of outcome, both in medicine as well as in economics. One of the relevant questionnaires is the FLA ("Fragebogen zur Lebensqualität bei Asthma"), a disease-specific instrument for measuring the quality of life of asthma patients. This questionnaire was supplemented with a generic instrument, the EuroQol. METHOD: Adult asthma patients treated in 23 pneumological ambulatory care units were randomly selected and asked to fill out both the FLA and the EuroQol questionnaires. Separate analyses of the results were carried out for each patient severity level, and covered the average values of the subscales, the correlation as well as the internal reliability of the questionnaires. RESULTS: The quality of life of asthma patients correlates strongly to the respective severity level of the illness. The patients of level 3 (serious asthma) in particular achieve values far below average when compared to the total population (42 out of 100 according to EuroQol). By contrast, the subjective quality of life of asthmatics in level 1 is only slightly reduced. The correlation of the FLA subscales as well as of the EuroQol values is high (0.74-0.97). CONCLUSIONS: The study points out that as progression of the illness is associated with high losses of quality of life for the patient. From a health-economic point of view this is important for the calculation of so-called intangible costs, which are often not quantified in studies on the cost of disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

["Questionnaire on Quality of Life in Asthma"--studies of the dimensionality and references for evaluation].

The FLA, representing the German revision of the LWAQ (Hyland et al., 1991), is one of the few available questionnaires for measuring the disease-specific quality of life (QOL) in adults suffering from asthma. The present study aimes at analysing the structure and reliability of the FLA and also at improving its feasibility. Therefore, the inventory has been analysed in terms of its dimensional structure, internal reliability, and homogeneity. To facilitate the interpretation of the test outcomes and to obtain more differentiated predictors, the 40 items of the FLA were--according to theoretical considerations--categorised into three dimensions ("Physical Symptoms", "Psychological Distress" and "Functional Status"). In this study the FLA was applied with a sample of 136 hospitalised asthma patients of varying severity (63 male, 73 female, meanage; 49.5 years) in the North German "Allergie- und Asthmaklinik Wilhelm Gronemeyer, Bad Lippspringe, to evaluate the reliability of the total scale and its dimensions. The findings of the item analysis with regard to selectivity and item difficulty yielding satisfying results are presented in multiple tables. Furthermore, recommendations for the transformation of original values into summary scores and evaluation procedures were developed to improve the strength of evidence in the data. The summary scores, which can be computed for both total scale and the three dimensions, facilitate intra- and interindividual comparison of the patients' quality of life and point to special deficits in different QOL domains requiring specific therapeutic interventions. Finally, the FLA's range of application, its limitations, developmental perspectives and proposals for improvement are discussed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1998

[Sensitization in budgerigar owners].

In a prospective study 258 adults were investigated for sensitisation against bird antigens (budgerigar, canary, pigeon) using intracutaneous test. 18 of 78 budgerigar keepers were sensitised against budgerigar feathers. 30 (38%) showed a positive skin reaction at least with one of the three extracts tested. In none bird exposed persons a sensitisation was found in 18/96 (19%) against budgerigar and in 24/96 (25%) against at least one of the three allergen extracts. Late reactions occurred in 5/70 (7%) budgerigar keepers, 4/5 with pigeon feathers. The frequency of sensitisation against budgerigar antigens increased to 48% of bird keepers (24/50) if the birds could fly in their homes instead of being caged always (4/22, 18%). Three of the 78 budgerigar keepers (4%) had a positive nasal provocation with feathers extract, they were skin positive against all three bird antigens tested.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Mite fauna of German farms.

Storage mites are important sources of airborne allergens, especially on farms. A mite survey was conducted in the working environments of 121 farms in five regions of Germany. Of 859 samples, 743 (86.4%) contained mites, representing 547,857 astigmatic mites in 723 g of dust and 34,501 prostigmatic mites in 469 g of dust. Dust samples from nine sites of each farm were collected and analyzed. Ninety-three percent of all mites belonged to the order Astigmata (storage- and house-dust-mite species); 35 Astigmata and 14 Prostigmata mite species were identified. According to the abundance and steadiness of the important astigmatic mite species, the following order was found: Lepidoglyphus destructor > Glycyphagus domesticus > Acarus siro > Tyrophagus longior > Blomia tjibodas > Chortoglyphus arcuatus > Thyreophagus entomophagus > Tyrophagus putrescentiae > Euroglyphus longior > Tyrophagus palmarum > Acarus farris > Acarus immobilis > Gohieria fusca. Blomia tjibodas was described for the first time as an abundant species of farms in Germany.

Agriculture↗
PubMed1997

Cow hair allergen (Bos d 2) content in house dust: correlation with sensitization in farmers with cow hair asthma.

Farmers (N = 45) suffering from occupational cow hair asthma were visited at home to evaluate the concentration of cow hair major allergen Bos d 2 in the house dust and to correlate these results with measures of avoidance, degree of sensitization, clinical symptoms, and lung function. Bos d 2 was determined by rocket immunoelectrophoresis. In dust of tiles and linoleum Bos d 2 was difficult to detect, whereas dust samples of carpets often contained high concentrations of the allergen (50-520 micrograms/g fine dust). Bos d 2 levels were significantly higher when barn and living quarters were in the same building. Concentrations of cow hair-specific IgE were correlated with concentrations of Bos d 2 in house dust samples. A concentration of 20-29 micrograms Bos d 2 per gram of house dust could be established as threshold value for relevant IgE sensitization. Avoiding the barn is not a sufficient avoidance measure for cow hair asthmatics if the partner continues cattle farming. Cessation of cattle farming and avoiding the former barn results in a marked reduction in Bos d 2 concentration in living quarters, a decreased degree of sensitization, and a reduced symptom score. Farmers with cow hair asthma should avoid cattle and thoroughly clean all carpets in the living quarters to avoid continuous cow allergen exposure.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

[Controlled clinical comparative evaluation of fluticasone powder inhalation versus flunisolide dose aerosol in patients with mild to moderate asthma].

A 6 week randomised, multicentre parallel group study compared the efficacy and safety of fluticasone propionate (FP) dry powder inhaler 2 x 250 micrograms/d and flunisolide (FLUN) metered dose inhaler 2 x 500 micrograms/d. 169 patients with mild to moderate asthma (FEV1/VC > or = 60% predicted) participated. The final clinical judgement resulted from the change in FEV1 and symptom intensity (measured by the oxygen cost diagram = OCD). 79% of the patients in the FP group showed improvement or partial improvement, compared to 57% in the flunisolide group (p = 0.02). The results indicate a greater efficacy of FP concerning the intensity of dyspnea, cough and symptoms at night (p = 0.03). During the treatment period morning and evening PEF improved in both groups; in 81% of the FP patients and 71% of the FLUN patients. 50% of all patients had a FEV1 below 2.5 l/s. The greater efficacy of FP was especially found in patients with lower FEV1. In both treatment groups drug safety was judged good or excellent by most patients. The results of this 6 week study indicate a greater efficacy (FEV1 and symptoms) of FP 2 x 250 micrograms/d versus FLUN 2 x 500 micrograms/d. The study confirms that there is at least a 2:1 ratio in efficacy comparing FP with FLUN in asthma patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

[Different threshold concentrations for sensitization by cattle hair allergen Bos d 2 in atopic and non-atopic farmers].

Several threshold values for indoor allergens leading to IgE sensitization were proposed. Currently such values exists for allergens of house dust mite, cat, dog, and cockroach and cattle. A high sensitization is known as an important risk factor in the development of asthma. This study was undertaken to examine threshold values of major cow hair allergen Bos d 2 in the house dust of atopic and nonatopic cow hair asthmatic farmers. 45 patients with cow hair asthma were visited at their homes. House dust samples were taken from corridor, living room, and bedroom. The concentration of Bos d 2 was determined by means of rocket immunoelectrophoresis. Additionally, samples of venous blood were taken to demonstrate specific IgE towards cow epithelia by CAP-RAST. Five patients were excluded from further investigations because they have given up their cattle for less than 6 months. In 21 patients occurred typical atopic stigmata like infantil history of atopic eczema, hay fever or milk crust, while the other 19 subjects did not show an atopic diathesis. High sensitization towards cow epithelia (specific IgE > 0.7 kU/l in CAP-RAST) occurred significantly more often in atopics than in nonatopics. In atopic subjects the allergen concentrations leading to IgE sensitization amounted to 1-20 micrograms Bos d 2/g dust, whereas in nonatopics were found higher Bos d 2 threshold values (25-50 micrograms/g dust). The present study suggests that in nonatopic cow hair asthmatics high indoor Bos d 2 levels lead to IgE sensitization as well as the close contact to cattle.

Agricultural Workers' Diseases↗