Lung disease efforts target care, diagnosis, awareness

A Western Trust six-week pulmonary rehabilitation program is helping people with interstitial lung disease manage symptoms and improve their quality of life, with organizers expecting to offer it on an ongoing basis. In Idaho, a woman with stage 4 bronchiolitis obliterans safely gave birth after moving for specialist care; her infant was diagnosed with the rare metabolic disorder MCAD deficiency. Tulane researchers have developed a DNA-based test that identified common forms of nontuberculous mycobacteria with 97% effectiveness in testing and could cut diagnosis time from weeks to hours, though it still needs FDA approval and does not determine which drugs to use. Separately, the American Lung Association is raising awareness of pulmonary arterial hypertension and the lengthy path many patients face to diagnosis, while experts stress specialized care and careful attention to family history and symptoms that may point to related conditions such as HHT.