Courses

Monitoring of asthma, COPD and other airway diseases

Target audience

Pulmonologists
Trainees in pulmonology
Research fellows involved in research on airway inflammation/oxidative stress
Laboratory technicians performing lung function tests, methacholine challenge or exhaled breath tests

Educational aims

To provide the participants with a critical overview of different modes of monitoring airway diseases associated inflammation and oxidative stress in research and clinical practice.
To give participants methodological advice with information on the current guidelines in each method and technique.
To present the most important steps in using these techniques and determine the most frequent pitfalls when using them, together with potential data interpretation problems.

Introduction B. Balbi (Veruno, Italy)
How to value clinical presentation (symptom score, QoL questionnaires) G. Joos (Ghent, Belgium)
Lung function measurements in adults and children F. de Jongh (Enschedee, Netherlands)
Limitations of traditional tests, unanswered aspects of airway diseases B. Balbi (Veruno, Italy)
Measurement of airway hyperresponsiveness; part I: direct challenges E. Bel (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Measurement of airway hyperresponsiveness; part II: indirect challenges G. Joos (Ghent, Belgium)
Methodological considerations of sputum induction R. Louis (Liège, Belgium)
Applications of induced sputum sampling in asthma and COPD A. Spanevello (Tradate, Italy)
Special considerations in sputum induction in severe patients E. Bel (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Methods to measure exhaled and nasal nitric oxide M. Corradi (Parma, Italy)
Methods to measure other exhaled volatiles (CO, ethane, pentane, etc…) P. Paredi (London, UK)
Electronic noses- breathprints P. J. Sterk (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Methods to collect exhaled breath condensate I. Horváth (Budakeszi, Hungary)
Methods to measure different mediators in EBC M. Corradi (Parma, Italy)
Monitoring of airway diseases in children J. C. De Jongste (Rotterdam, The Netherlands)
Applications of exhaled and nasal nitric oxide in airway diseases P.J. Barnes (London, United Kingdom)
Value of exhaled volatile organic compounds in monitoring airway disease P. J. Sterk (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Markers of airway diseases in exhaled breath condensate and their clinical value P.J. Barnes (London, United Kingdom)
Comparison of exhaled biomarkers to other markers of airway diseases I. Horváth (Budakeszi, Hungary)