Peter J. Sterk

Bio: Peter J. Sterk is an academic researcher from University of Amsterdam. The author has contributed to research in topics: Asthma & COPD. The author has an hindex of 70, co-authored 357 publications receiving 21048 citations. Previous affiliations of Peter J. Sterk include Leiden University Medical Center.

International ERS/ATS guidelines on definition, evaluation and treatment of severe asthma

Abstract: Severe or therapy-resistant asthma is increasingly recognised as a major unmet need. A Task Force, supported by the European Respiratory Society and American Thoracic Society, reviewed the definition and provided recommendations and guidelines on the evaluation and treatment of severe asthma in children and adults. A literature review was performed, followed by discussion by an expert committee according to the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation) approach for development of specific clinical recommendations. When the diagnosis of asthma is confirmed and comorbidities addressed, severe asthma is defined as asthma that requires treatment with high dose inhaled corticosteroids plus a second controller and/or systemic corticosteroids to prevent it from becoming “uncontrolled” or that remains “uncontrolled” despite this therapy. Severe asthma is a heterogeneous condition consisting of phenotypes such as eosinophilic asthma. Specific recommendations on the use of sputum eosinophil count and exhaled nitric oxide to guide therapy, as well as treatment with anti-IgE antibody, methotrexate, macrolide antibiotics, antifungal agents and bronchial thermoplasty are provided. Coordinated research efforts for improved phenotyping will provide safe and effective biomarker-driven approaches to severe asthma therapy.

An official American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society statement: asthma control and exacerbations: standardizing endpoints for clinical asthma trials and clinical practice.

Abstract: Background: The assessment of asthma control is pivotal to the evaluation of treatment response in individuals and in clinical trials. Previously, asthma control, severity, and exacerbations were defined and assessed in many different ways.Purpose: The Task Force was established to provide recommendations about standardization of outcomes relating to asthma control, severity, and exacerbations in clinical trials and clinical practice, for adults and children aged 6 years or older.Methods: A narrative literature review was conducted to evaluate the measurement properties and strengths/weaknesses of outcome measures relevant to asthma control and exacerbations. The review focused on diary variables, physiologic measurements, composite scores, biomarkers, quality of life questionnaires, and indirect measures.Results: The Task Force developed new definitions for asthma control, severity, and exacerbations, based on current treatment principles and clinical and research relevance. In view of current knowledge ...

Nitric Oxide in Health and Disease of the Respiratory System

Abstract: During the past decade a plethora of studies have unravelled the multiple roles of nitric oxide (NO) in airway physiology and pathophysiology. In the respiratory tract, NO is produced by a wide variety of cell types and is generated via oxidation of l-arginine that is catalyzed by the enzyme NO synthase (NOS). NOS exists in three distinct isoforms: neuronal NOS (nNOS), inducible NOS (iNOS), and endothelial NOS (eNOS). NO derived from the constitutive isoforms of NOS (nNOS and eNOS) and other NO-adduct molecules (nitrosothiols) have been shown to be modulators of bronchomotor tone. On the other hand, NO derived from iNOS seems to be a proinflammatory mediator with immunomodulatory effects. The concentration of this molecule in exhaled air is abnormal in activated states of different inflammatory airway diseases, and its monitoring is potentially a major advance in the management of, e.g., asthma. Finally, the production of NO under oxidative stress conditions secondarily generates strong oxidizing agents (reactive nitrogen species) that may modulate the development of chronic inflammatory airway diseases and/or amplify the inflammatory response. The fundamental mechanisms driving the altered NO bioactivity under pathological conditions still need to be fully clarified, because their regulation provides a novel target in the prevention and treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases of the airways.

Long-term effects of a long-acting beta 2-adrenoceptor agonist, salmeterol, on airway hyperresponsiveness in patients with mild asthma.

Abstract: Background. Asthma is characterized by hyperresponsiveness of the airways to bronchoconstrictive stimuli. Long-acting β2-adrenoceptor agonists have been introduced as a new therapeutic approach, but there is growing concern about whether control of asthma may deteriorate with the regular use of these agents. We investigated the long-term effects of the β2-agonist salmeterol on bronchodilation and on airway hyperresponsiveness to the bronchoconstrictive agent methacholine in mild asthma. Methods. In a parallel, double-blind study, 24 patients with mild asthma were randomly assigned to treatment with either inhaled salmeterol (50 μg, twice daily) (n = 12) or placebo (n = 12) during an eight-week trial. Methacholine challenge was performed before, during, and after the treatment period. Methacholine responsiveness was measured as the provocative concentration (PC20) that caused a 20 percent decrease in the forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1). Results. There was a significant increase in FE...

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Lung volumes and forced ventilatory flows

Abstract: Lung volumes are subdivided into static and dynamic lung volumes. Static lung volumes are measured by methods which are based on the completeness of respiratory manoeuvres, so that the velocity of the manoeuvres should be adjusted accordingly. The measurements taken during fast breathing movements are described as dynamic lung volumes and as forced inspiratory and expiratory flows. ### 1.1 Static lung volumes and capacities The volume of gas in the lung and intrathoracic airways is determined by the properties of lung parenchyma and surrounding organs and tissues, surface tension, the force exerted by respiratory muscles, by lung reflexes and by the properties of airways. The gas volumes of thorax and lung are the same except in the case of a pneumothorax. If two or more subdivisions of the total lung capacity are taken together, the sum of the constituent volumes is described as a lung capacity. Lung volumes and capacities are described in more detail in § 2. #### 1.1.1 Determinants Factors which determine the size of the normal lung include stature, age, sex, body mass, posture, habitus, ethnic group, reflex factors and daily activity pattern. The level of maximal inspiration (total lung capacity, TLC) is influenced by the force developed by the inspiratory muscles (disorders include e.g. muscular dystrophy), the elastic recoil of the lung (disorders include e.g. pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema) and the elastic properties of the thorax and adjacent structures (disorders include e.g. ankylosis of joints). The level of maximal expiration (residual volume, RV) is determined by the force exerted by respiratory muscles (disorders include e.g. muscle paralysis), obstruction, occlusion and compression of small airways (disorders include e.g. emphysema) and by the mechanical properties of lung and thorax (disorders include diffuse fibrosis, kyphoscoliosis). Assessing the total lung capacity is indispensable in establishing a restrictive ventilatory defect or in diagnosing abnormal lung distensibility, as may occur in patients …

The PRISMA Extension Statement for Reporting of Systematic Reviews Incorporating Network Meta-analyses of Health Care Interventions: Checklist and Explanations

Abstract: The PRISMA statement is a reporting guideline designed to improve the completeness of reporting of systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Authors have used this guideline worldwide to prepare their reviews for publication. In the past, these reports typically compared 2 treatment alternatives. With the evolution of systematic reviews that compare multiple treatments, some of them only indirectly, authors face novel challenges for conducting and reporting their reviews. This extension of the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Metaanalyses) statement was developed specifically to improve the reporting of systematic reviews incorporating network meta-analyses.